


A Rose Among Thorns

by pansexualfandommess (redvelvetrose)



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Armitage Hux Has Feelings, Armitage Hux Has Issues, Armitage Hux Needs A Hug, Brendol Hux's A+ Parenting, Cunnilingus, F/M, Falling In Love, Fellatio, Flashbacks, Hand Jobs, Leia Organa Lives, Nice Armitage Hux, Oral Sex, Pregnant Sex, Redemption, Rose Tico Deserved Better, Sex, Sexting, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-05-13
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:48:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 40,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23898517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redvelvetrose/pseuds/pansexualfandommess
Summary: Rose has been assigned the task of being the Resistance's liaison for their First Order spy. For a year, she and their spy have been trading messages back and forth and been getting... decidedly non-professional. And then Rose finds out her spy is General Hux. And Hux finds out his liaison is the Haysian girl that humiliated him on the Supremacy. Hijinks ensure?This fic keeps Leia alive for.... reasons. And places more importance on the Rose/Hux dynamic in the big picture.
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Rose Tico, Rose - Relationship
Comments: 41
Kudos: 95





	1. Chapter 1

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table.  
You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss.  
_ -Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

_One year after the battle of Crait..._

“Say that again?” Rose demanded, her voice was somewhat drowned out amid the bustle of Ajan Kloss. She was fairly certain she had heard Finn correctly, but the words were so unexpected that they almost didn’t make sense.

Finn huffed impatiently. “General Hux is the spy. Fucking Hux! Of all of the low-down, dirty-“

She interrupted him, “So where is he? Did you confine him on the Falcon?”

She tried to shake off the innate surprise, but that did not stop her heart from leaping into her throat. She considered just heading towards the Falcon herself to see Hux, but what Finn said next stopped her in her tracks.

“Confine him-? No, he’s not WITH us!” Finn exclaimed. “He stayed on the Steadfast. He had me blast him so it would look like we forced him to let us go!”

“You SHOT him and then you LEFT him there?!” Rose shrieked in disbelief. “Finn, you big dummy, why would you leave him there? You KNOW the protocol for when a spy’s cover is blown! You should have brought him with you, no matter what he said!”

“Hey! It was HIS idea!” Finn protested, “HE insisted on staying there and we didn’t have time to argue!”

She beelined to the workbench behind Finn, knocking him back to get to her datapad there. “I don’t care if he insisted!” she growled at him, “You left a valuable resource in enemy hands! If they question him, they might make him give up what he knows about us! If I go to my datapad and he doesn’t answer me… you three are all going to be in a bunch of trouble.”

She left Finn to find some privacy, which she found behind a series of crates stacked on top of each other in the hangar bay outside her workstation. She started up the datapad; it was old, battered, and barely had enough power to transmit and receive messages. It was a damn brick, but it was a secure and encrypted brick.

She had to retype the passcode twice to access the datapad because her shaking fingers had caused her to mess up the first time. She frantically transmitted a message to Hux. “Come on… come on… respond,” she urged quietly, heart in her throat and her stomach rolling. If something had happened to him… no, she couldn’t think like that!

Still, she couldn’t believe that they had just left him there! The protocol was to extract their spy immediately. They were right there! It would have been so easy to just bring him with! She semi-expected this sort of thing from Finn, who still had an ingrained impulse to obey the command of a First Order officer. Understandable.

But Poe? Easy-going, “ready to see the good in everyone” Poe? The fact that Poe had left their spy behind with no guarantee of future extraction, made her stomach twist with rage.

Even Hux himself was not spared her fury. He knew they had a protocol in place! What the hell was he thinking, staying behind like that? There was absolutely no reason she could think of for him to NOT have simply joined Finn, Poe, and Chewie in their escape!

“Come on… come on…” she urged again.

***

_Flashback: Two months after the battle of Crait..._

Poe had been over the moons when they had first been contacted by their First Order spy. The transmissions had come through an old frequency and luckily their equally old equipment was still functional enough to receive them. Poe had to be reminded to be careful in case this had been some kind of trap. Fortunately, the intel their spy had given them as a token of good faith had proved useful. Poe then passed on the responsibility of spy handler to Rose, along with the brick of a datapad.

“Come on. Work, you ancient piece of-“ she grumbled at the datapad as she shook it back and forth. A sigh of relief left her when the connection held. She transmitted the inquiry, waiting for the passcode.

The passcode had been established earlier between Poe and the spy when they had first made contact. After the good faith had been proven, Poe told Rose their passcode to establish that they were safe to communicate: Ro’sham’bo[1]. It was a reference to some Twi’leki hero of the clone wars, an obscure facet to history that likely no one else would know. No one except for an obscure historian who happened to work for the Resistance.

> _R- Passcode?_
> 
> _FO- Ro’sham’bo._
> 
> _R- What have you got for us now?_

Rose started up her recorder, a program that would feed off of the messages from her datapad to a black box that would store the messages to bring to Poe and Leia.

> _FO- The new flagship is being built on Karlinus[2]. We’ve been salvaging everything we can from the orbit of Crait. Anything that hasn’t burned up in Crait’s atmosphere is being hauled to Karlinus._
> 
> _R- Isn’t Karlinus a former slave planet?_
> 
> _FO- Not so former, these days. We’ve had control of it for years. It’s amazing how many systems slip through the New Republic’s fingers when there’s no economic profit in it for them._

Rose frowned, biting her bottom lip. He wasn’t wrong. Frankly, she held the First Order and the New Republic in the same regard. The First Order was more direct and crueler. But the New Republic was, at best, oblivious and, at worst, deliberately ignorant. She’d experienced that firsthand on Hays Minor.

> _R- True enough. Contrary to popular belief, we’re not all proponents of the New Republic._
> 
> _R- I’m not even sure the General holds them in high regard these days._
> 
> _R- But, the people on Karlinus?_
> 
> _R- Are they in danger?_
> 
> _FO- Far less danger than previously. At least they aren’t being targeted by pirates anymore._
> 
> _R- Not exactly an answer to my question._
> 
> _FO- No, they are not in danger. The First Order might not be paying them a salary, per se. But they are fed and housed and rested._
> 
> _R- I’d prefer the First Order not make slaves of people at all. Are they going to strip the place and then test weapons on it?_

She wasn’t sure if her tone could be conveyed over text; she couldn’t help but remember her own planet, to think of the people on Karlinus and feel a certain kinship. They were being used by the First Order for their labor and receiving mere survival in return. There was a long pause: she wondered if their spy had shut off their end of the connection. Maybe someone had come and they had to prevent their cover from being blown? But the next message came tentatively.

> _FO- No._
> 
> _FO- There are no plans to harm the planet or anyone on it._

She breathed a sigh of relief. The spy could be lying of course, but why bother lying about something like this? They were already divulging First Order secrets.

> _R- Anything else?_
> 
> _FO- In addition to the passcode, we should have code names for each other. It would be a second level of authentication._

She hadn’t considered that; but a name immediately came to mind. One she’d heard about a long time ago. One that was a legend among the old Rebellion fighters.

> _R- I want to call you Fulcrum. [3]_
> 
> _R- It’s the name that the old Rebellion used for important informants. One of them was an Imperial Security Agent who turned spy for them. He wound up defecting to the Rebellion when he was found out._
> 
> _R- The old Rebels here tell stories about him all the time._
> 
> _R- I think it’s a way to remind us that even people on the other side can see the light._
> 
> _FO- That is acceptable. What shall you be called?_
> 
> _R- I don’t know._
> 
> _R- Anything you want._
> 
> _FO- Keystone._

Although Rose had no real expectations for her code name, she was still surprised at Fulcum’s choice. The keystone was the final piece that held everything in place, a hallmark of strength.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [1] Hamilton reference FTW! Marshal Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Reauchambeau was a French nobleman and general who played a major role in helping the Thirteen Colonies win independence during the American Revolution. During this time, he served as commander-in-chief of the French Expeditionary Force that embarked from France in order to help the American Continental Army fight against British forces
> 
> [2] I couldn’t find any evidence of a suitable planet near Crait in either Canon or Legends and, thus, created one of my own, Karlinus.
> 
> [3] Fulcrum is the codename used by Saw Gerrara, Ahsoka Tano, Alexsandr Kallus, and other Rebel intelligence operatives, as portrayed in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels. I figure those stories would have been passed down through the ranks.
> 
> [4] Another Hamilton reference FTW!
> 
> [5] Reeks were large, muscular quadrupeds native to the planet Ylesia and the Codian Moon. One such creature was used to attack Anakin Skywalker in Attack of the Clones.
> 
> [6] Yes, I gave Hays Minor their own version of the King Arthur myths. Hush.
> 
> [7] Irish. It’s supposed to be Irish. May my Celtic ancestors forgive me.
> 
> [8] Reference to a similar line in About Time where Domhnall’s Gleeson’s character, Tim, is describing himself.
> 
> [9] Paraphrase of a line from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
> 
> [10] In The Clone Wars, older clones would refer to a fully-trained but not yet battle-tested clone as a “shiny”. I figure this could be a little piece of slang that had trickled down through the Old Republic clones to the Imperial Empire and then to the First Order; and now just means anyone new, like saying “newbie”.


	2. Chapter 2

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table.  
You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss.  
_ -Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

> _R- Fulcrum._

Hux had been staring at Keystone’s frantic inquiry for some time, debating whether or not he should reply. He’d stopped back in his quarters just long enough to make a few last-minute preparations and hadn’t even intended on turning the datapad on. But the blinking indication light had silently screamed at him to check. He submitted and responded.

> _FO- Keystone_.

Keystone replied immediately.

> _R- Oh, thank the stars, you’re there! Everybody made it back and told me everything!_

Everybody. That could only mean that Dameron and his ridiculous crew had managed to complete their escape. More to the point, if they had made it back, he had no doubt that they would have spouted off to the entire Resistance who he was.

> _FO- Which means you know my identity now._
> 
> _R- Yes!_
> 
> _R-They told me!_
> 
> _R- I cannot believe you didn’t go with them!_
> 
> _R- And you told him to shoot you!_

He grimaced. At the mention of the traitor, a shard of pain reached up through him from his leg, making him hiss. He swore that if he ever saw FN-2187 again, he would return the favor.

> _FO- I did, but he didn’t comply._
> 
> _R- I don’t understand?_
> 
> _FO- I told him to shoot me in the arm. He shot me in the leg._
> 
> _R- He still shot you!_
> 
> _R- And why didn’t you come with them?_
> 
> _R- Your cover is completely blown!_
> 
> _R- What possible reason could you have to stay?_
> 
> _FO- Someone had to stay behind and make sure no one chased after the Falcon. I was able to divert attention by giving the distress call from a different hangar. The only way I could do that was to remain on the_ Steadfast.
> 
> _R-I’m still pissed at you!_
> 
> _R- But I’ll accept that reasoning for now._
> 
> _R- Have you been to medical?_
> 
> _FO- Yes._
> 
> _FO- Just bandaged up to stop the bleeding._

He decided to leave out the fact that he needed a cane at present since his leg couldn’t support him. She would only worry more unnecessarily.

> _R- What about imaging? What if it’s broken?_
> 
> _FO- It’s not broken. I’ll get further medical attention after I report to Pryde._
> 
> _R- You must be out of your goddamned mind! [4]_

He frowned and pinched the bridge of his nose with one gloved hand. Every minute he delayed making his report meant more and more suspicion to be directed at him. So far, everybody thought he was a sniveling and craven coward and he had been using that to his advantage. It would not be too far off to believe that he had been overpowered by two Resistance fighters and a Wookie.

Keystone sent another message.

> _R- You can’t go to Pryde!_
> 
> _R- Please, I am begging you._
> 
> _R- Don’t go anywhere near him!_
> 
> _R- Make the report remotely and get the fuck out of there!_
> 
> _FO- Language._
> 
> _R- Fuck my language!_
> 
> _R- You are smarter than this!_
> 
> _R- He will never buy it!_

He sighed. Her insistence only bolstered what he already suspected, that his cover story was as thin as a slip of flimsi. But he had been forced to act on the fly to get them out alive. Now, he was stuck in between a rock and hard place.

> _FO- I am making preparations to leave as soon as I can. But I need to distract Pryde. He needs to think that I’m seeking further medical treatment if I am to sneak off to one of the shuttles and get off the_ Steadfast _. Once I am a safe distance from the First Order, I will contact you for coordinates to a rendezvous point._
> 
> _R- That’s not good enough!_

Her compassion never seemed to stop surprising him, especially now. Despite knowing his identity, Keystone was still concerned for his safety.

> _FO- I have to make the report in person. Non-negotiable. What would you have me do?_
> 
> _R- Do you have access to any kind of armor you can wear under your uniform?_


	3. Chapter 3

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table._  
 _You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss._  
-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

_Flashback: Six months after the battle of Crait..._

> _R- What made you want to help us?_

He sighed and leaned back in his bed, one hand draped over his eyes. Apart from the exchange of information, they had also started to talk to each other during their rest shifts to wind down from the pressure that the war was exerting on both of them. Oftentimes, they had fallen asleep on each other during these types of conversations.

He’d gotten used to Keystone’s ability to switch topics at the drop of a hat without any semblance of a preamble. Intel was always traded first, but afterwards they would talk about things that had little to do with the First Order or the Resistance. She would tell him about her other various tasks, complain about Poe’s arrogance or how under-staffed they were. Sometimes the conversation veered into even less important topics; her holodrama obsession, food she missed from home, anything to engage him in further conversation.

They had agreed to keep their identities secret, it did not deter her from telling him about herself. It was like she wanted him to know her as a person, not just his handler. He had learned early on that she was a woman and had a sister who had died in the evacuation of D’Qar. Her parents had died earlier, she did not divulge where or how.

Although she had not prompted him to reciprocate the same level of details as she had, he felt compelled for her to see him as a man and not some treacherous spy. He had confessed that he was not a mere stormtrooper, blindly following orders. Other than that, nothing else.

However, he was not prepared for this particular line of questioning. He found it easier to hide his intentions from Kylo Ren if he didn’t examine them too closely himself. He still believed in order, of course. He still believed that the New Republic was deeply flawed and corrupt to the point of being its own sort of evil empire. Though, he was quickly recognizing that while his so-called heart was in the right place, the First Order’s methods were ineffective at best and dangerous at worst.

> _FO- I hate Kylo Ren, for one thing. He’s destroying everything the First Order has accomplished and is working towards. We’re supposed to be bringing order to the galaxy, making it safe. Instead, all he’s doing now is ordering us to look for jedis and to test children for force sensitivity._
> 
> _R- You’re still on board with the rest of the First Order’s mandate?_
> 
> _FO- No. I’m not._
> 
> _R- That’s a relief._
> 
> _FO- It must be for you._
> 
> _R- Isn’t it to you?_
> 
> _FO- Honestly, no._
> 
> _FO- It’s not a relief to me._
> 
> _FO- It shifts everything I know about my work. About myself. I’ve always been quite active in the First Order’s directive. I am complicit in everything the First Order has accomplished, both good and bad._
> 
> _FO- I’m not some innocent little Stormtrooper with a sob-story about being stolen as an infant and brainwashed into this._
> 
> _R- How long have you been in the First Order?_

He licked his lips unconsciously, considering his answer.

> _FO- Since its inception. I was born and raised under the Imperial Empire._
> 
> _R- You served under the Empire?_
> 
> _FO- No._
> 
> _FO- I was still a child when the Empire fell._

He could imagine the gears in her head turning as she tried to paint a picture of him, with what little information he gave her.

> _R- Were your parents Imperial officers?_

He swallowed hard, his father’s angry face flashing in his mind’s eye, a stripe of phantom pain streaking across his back.

> _FO- My father was._
> 
> _R- What about your mother?_
> 
> _FO- She worked in kitchens. If she had any political leanings, she kept them to herself. Not that it matters, she died when I was young._
> 
> _R- Oh, Fulcrum, I am so sorry. It’s never easy to lose a parent, I’m sorry you had to go through that._

He snorted aloud and was then immediately very glad they were communicating via text. Losing his mother had broken young Armitage’s heart. He’d lost her well before she had died, though. He didn’t even remember her face. Nor did he remember the child he’d been at that time. He never knew her and yet he had grieved her before he had understood anything.

> _FO- I don’t need someone feeling sorry for me. I don’t even remember her._
> 
> _R- What about your father?_
> 
> _FO- He died too._
> 
> _R- I’m sorry._
> 
> _R- Was he killed by Rebels?_
> 
> _R- Is that why you hate us?_

It took him a moment to follow her through that thread of logic. If rebels had killed his father, he would’ve been downright grateful that they saved him the trouble. Unfortunately, Brendol Hux had stayed as far away from the battlefield as was humanly possible.

> _FO- No, I had him killed._

He was not surprised by the length of silence this time. He was surprised that she didn’t immediately disconnect.

> _R- Why? He was your father._
> 
> _FO- He was a disgrace to the Order and a poor example of what a commanding officer should be. I assure you, he was not missed by anyone, least of all me. The vile reek [5] had it coming.._
> 
> _R-Wow._
> 
> _R- I’m sorry for an entirely different reason now._

He sighed. He suspected he had surprised her and not in anything resembling a pleasant way. This was not how he wished to continue their communications.

> _FO- My apologies. I should not have burdened you with such knowledge._
> 
> _R- No no, please. Don’t apologize. I shouldn’t have pried._
> 
> _R- I’m too curious for my own good._
> 
> _R- Gets me into trouble all the time._
> 
> _FO- It’s fine._

He was uncertain why he cared about her feelings or what she may have thought about him.

There was a long pause, during which he had to resist the sudden urge to pick at his fingers, a nervous habit he had not engaged in since childhood. Her usual method of writing was quick and fluid, often with spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes. There would be walls of texts; only to be followed by far more concise, clipped ones from him. Yet it consistently took him longer to respond to her because he always reviewed his words before sending them into the æther, weighing and measuring every syllable. With time, he’d come to appreciate those long blocks of text even if they were difficult to read and made his eyes sting.

His long pauses were par for the course. Hers meant something.

And this one was longer than most, sending his pulse sky-rocketing. What if she stopped talking to him now? Or passed the job off to someone else in the Resistance? Someone he didn’t know or trust?

What a ridiculous line of thought! He shook his head, as though trying to dislodge the thought and rattle it out of his brain. He didn’t actually know her! All he knew were words on a screen! That was not enough to base trust or… anything else… on.

> _R- It’s not fine._
> 
> _R- Maybe I’m reading between the lines too much._
> 
> _R- But did your father mistreat you?_
> 
> _R- Maybe?_
> 
> _FO- That would be an understatement._
> 
> _R- Oh no._

Another long pause from her. Everything he was telling her was horrifying her by the second. He didn’t want her pity, didn’t want her to feel sorry for him, didn’t want her to think that he was weak. He didn’t want to forget or deny what his father had done to him. He held onto his anger, using it to strengthen himself like a smith did with their hammer over metal. He wondered what she thought of him now. He wanted her to see him as he saw himself, a survivor.

> _R- Did he hurt you?_

He swallowed tightly against the nausea rising in his throat; Brendol Hux’s cold blue eyes raking over him and always finding him deficient. The memory of the sound of a belt being pulled through loops of cloth made him cringe instinctively. He couldn’t remember ever actually screaming in reality, but he had screamed himself raw inside of his head.

> _FO- He did._

Another pause, but the shortest from her so far.

> _R- Oh fuck._
> 
> _R-WHY?_
> 
> _FO- I was a bastard. A constant reminder that he had failed to live up to the standards expected of an Imperial commanding officer._
> 
> _R-So what? That’s HIS fault, not yours!_
> 
> _R- Why did he hurt you instead of protect you?_

She seemed outraged on his behalf. That was something new he had never seen from anyone. He was used to the hate and anger that bubbled up in his chest whenever he had the misfortune of recalling Brendol Hux, used to carrying that hate and anger all alone. It was practically an old friend at this point, despite the fact that Brendol had died over ten years ago. But to witness someone else be angry for him?

Something sharp seemed to jolt through his chest and he found himself typing quickly. The words poured from his fingertips, hurrying to tell her everything.

> _FO- He hated me._
> 
> _FO- I was the opposite of every trait he prized._
> 
> _FO- He expected a son of his to be large and strong; I was always small for my age, too small._
> 
> _FO- He expected me to be a perfect little soldier; but I was an anxious child and often failed at tasks because I was afraid of him._
> 
> _FO- He told me I was useless, weak-willed, and pathetic._
> 
> _FO- If I made any noise while he beat me, he would simply do it harder._

Her message came up as he was in the midst of typing.

> _R- Oh god, I am sitting here crying._
> 
> _R- How could he do that? How could anyone do that to any child, let alone their own child?_
> 
> _R- You didn’t deserve that._
> 
> _R- Not any of it._
> 
> _R- I might not know you in person, but from what I have seen, you’re very smart._
> 
> _R- Your tactics and strategies and the info you’ve given to me are always so on point._
> 
> _R- You’ve got a wicked sense of humor, unlike anyone else’s I’ve seen._
> 
> _R- You have a cat!_
> 
> _R- You have to be pretty special to earn a cat’s affections!_

Ah, yes he had told her about Millicent, hadn’t he? He glanced over at his beloved pet, who was currently asleep by his side. She slept on her back with her front paws curled against her chest in contentment, he couldn’t help but smile at how sweet she looked.

> _R- What I’m trying to say_
> 
> _R- Is that you are a good person… who just wound up with the First Order without really consenting to it. You didn’t deserve a lick of that abuse._

A good person? Him? Ah, but she didn’t know who he was. Not really. General Starkiller; the man who sentenced billions of innocents to their deaths, all to prove the First Order’s might. He might have been responsible for her sister and parents’ deaths.

> _FO- I am not a good person, Keystone. One does not become an officer of the First Order by being a good person._
> 
> _R- Yes, you are._
> 
> _R- You just don’t see it._


	4. Chapter 4

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table._  
 _You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss._  
-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

“Rose? I don’t think you’re going to like this chatter I got going on over here,” Connix said, looking distressed.

It had been an hour since Rose had signed off with Hux, wishing him luck and meaning it more than she ever had before. The plan was that he was going to report to Pryde, ask for a short medical visit to get his leg checked, and then book it to the shuttle he’d placed his things (and Millie) into. It was risky to take off without clearance and there was a chance they might attempt to shoot down their own shuttle.

“What are you hearing?” Rose asked, a cold chill ran down her back when Connix bit her lip.

“They’re saying that… General Hux is dead. It’s all over the First Order news frequencies.”

“Shit,” Poe was suddenly behind her, going pale under his normally dark complexion. “Are you serious? They just killed him? Just like that? Not even a trial or a court martial or anything? Just… just boom and dead?”

Connix nodded, although her eyes remained on Rose. “Yeah, apparently he reported to Pryde about you guys escaping and Pryde just shot him point blank.”

“They figured him out. Damn. Now what are we going to do? His intel was the only thing keeping us a few steps ahead of the First Order.” Poe ran a hand through his hair. Something about that statement made Rose snap. She turned on Poe.

“Really? A man is dead because he was helping us and that’s all you can think about? Your only concern is how now he’s of no use to us? Real compassionate, Commander. I’m sure that attitude will make General Organa very proud.”

“Hey, you know, he was not exactly mister sunshine and rainbows. I know you had some kind of flirty rapport going on with him, but let’s not forget that he destroyed an entire system. He was basically their Grand Moff Tarkin.” Poe countered.

“Grand Moff Tarkin never spied for us,” Leia’s stern, tired voice broke through the bustle of the base. “That’s a very important distinction.”

“General Organa! You should be resting!” D’Acy immediately went to her side, offering her arm for support.

“Please. There’s no time for resting right now. Rose,“ she turned her attention to her young lieutenant. “In your conversations with him, did he mention anything about a family? Parents? A wife? Children? Anyone to grieve for him?”

Rose’s jaw tightened. She could feel tears stinging her eyes, although she tried valiantly to hold them back. “N-no, General. He had no one. No family. Just a cat.”

Leia nodded and sighed as she sat down. “Such a waste. He had such a brilliant mind. And the First Order won’t even mourn him.”

“If I know the First Order, they won’t even bother burying or cremating his body. They’ll just chuck him out into space,” Finn at least had the decency to sound a bit more dismayed.

“Try to find out where the _Steadfast_ is projected to be, so we might have a chance to retrieve the general and give him a dignified burial,” Leia said with a soft sigh.

Connix nodded. Things like burial rites and funerals were a major part of what separated them from the First Order. Not being able to properly bury everyone they lost weighed heavily on all of them, Leia most of all.

“I’ll keep an ear out, General Organa.”

“I… I need a moment. I’ll be at my workstation.” Rose said hastily, quickly retreating before anyone could see her composure starting to slip. There was an ice cold sensation in her chest. It was the same feeling she’d gotten when she’d seen the holo representing Paige’s bomber blink and then go out.

Leia was wrong about one thing: Hux would be mourned. She would mourn him.

She picked up the practically-antique datapad and set it on her lap; she choked her sobbing down, hoping no one would hear her. Everything was blurred beyond the tears in her eyes as she turned it on. She began to touch type despite not being able to see anything properly.

> _R- Fulcrum._
> 
> _R- Fulcrum._
> 
> _R- Fulcrum._
> 
> _R- Hux._

No response came from him.

> _R- Everyone’s saying you’re dead._
> 
> _R- Please tell me they’re wrong._
> 
> _R- Please?_
> 
> _R- Please?_
> 
> _R- Quit fooling around and answer me!_
> 
> _R- Anything! Send something!_
> 
> _R- Please._
> 
> _R- Please, not like this._
> 
> _R- I can’t do this again._
> 
> _R- I can’t lose another person I care about like this._
> 
> _R- PLEASE._
> 
> _R- Damn it, Hux, if you don’t answer me, I will never forgive you!_

The other end remained stubbornly, heartbreakingly silent and Rose began to cry in earnest. Shoulders shaking with overwhelming grief, she barely managed to put the datapad back on its crate without dropping it. Her arms curled around her head, as if she were trying to block out the roar of a too-close ship engine. The roar she actually heard was just the blood inside of her head, but she couldn’t stop it. She rocked back and forth, trying to control herself, but being unable to. Despite the raging storm of emotions inside of her, she made very little sound. Anyone standing on the outside of her ring of crates would only hear occasional gasps for breath as Rose did indeed grieve for General Hux.


	5. Chapter 5

  
Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table._  
 _You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss._  
-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

_Flashback: 11 months after the battle of Crait..._

> _R- Please?_
> 
> _FO- Why do you want to know?_
> 
> _R- Because I do!_

Hux sighed; unaware of the small, indulgent smile that played on his face. He and Keystone had been talking for hours already this evening and neither of them were in any way inclined to call it a night and go to sleep. It was so late, well past his usual hour. At this point, even if he went to sleep now, he would only get maybe two hours of sleep before needing to be on duty again. He may as well just stay awake and power through his shift.

> _FO- No. I am not telling you. It’s private._
> 
> _R- Oh. Come on! I told you about mine!_
> 
> _FO- You told me. I didn’t ask._
> 
> _R- I still want to know._
> 
> _FO- You are not going to drop this, are you?_
> 
> _R- Not on your life._

He sighed softly and shook his head. His answer to her inquiry would be far less interesting than hers and he couldn’t shake the strange fear that she would be disappointed by it.

> _FO- There’s nothing to tell. I have never kissed anyone before._

Hell. That looked even more pathetic spelled out than it did in his head.

> _R- You’re kidding._
> 
> _FO- I am not. Why would I kid about something like this?_
> 
> _R- I don’t know._
> 
> _R- Maybe you just don’t want to tell me the real story?_
> 
> _FO- I don’t lie. Not to you anyway._
> 
> _R- My dear Fulcrum, you’re making me blush!_

He had no clear picture of her in his head. Still, the idea of bringing color to her cheeks warmed him, making him shift his position in bed. Her physical descriptions of herself were always purposely vague; dark hair, short stature, and heavy set. She used those words in a self-deprecating manner.

> _FO- If we ever meet in person, I can do more than make you blush._

He had intended to tease her like she had been teasing him for weeks; although instead of irritating him, it always made his chest feel tight. Not in a bad way. Quite the contrary. She would suggest something of a decidedly personal nature, he would balk and sometimes scold her for her lack of propriety, then she would laugh at him and tell him not to be so serious all of the time. When Hux had sent the message, he had only focused on teasing her and rendering her speechless like she so often did to him. But immediately after sending it, he realized that message bordered dangerously between flirtatious and licentious.

> _R- Are you actually flirting with me for a change?_
> 
> _FO- I am as surprised as you, my dear Keystone._
> 
> _R- Will wonders never cease?_
> 
> _R- I might beat you to the punch on making me blush by making you blush first!_
> 
> _FO- How?_
> 
> _R- Maybe I will get to be the first person to kiss you._

His body stirred at that idea. He licked his lips and took a deep breath, suddenly very aware of a fine tremor snaking across his shoulders and down his arms. He imagined taking her into his arms, having to bend his head low to kiss her. She would be so soft against him.

> _FO- I would like that. I would be honoured if you would be my first kiss._
> 
> _R- You have such a polite way of expressing yourself._
> 
> _R- Is that something the First Order impressed on you?_
> 
> _R- Or is it just your way?_
> 
> _FO- Just my way, I suppose. I am always somewhat intent on being a gentleman, even if I am only a bastard._
> 
> _R- Hey, now, don’t be like that._
> 
> _R- You know, I don’t care if you’re a bastard or a king._
> 
> _FO- I know you do not care. But, I care._
> 
> _R- What you are doesn’t matter._
> 
> _R- What can I do to make you forget about it?_

_Love me._

The immediate response to her question startled him. Although they had just started talking about past relationships and kisses, they had never discussed the idea of future relationships or… them. Her flirting with him had steadily increased and gotten a bit more… intense. He had not been insensible of it. He simply had no idea how to respond. Tonight was the first time he’d actually done more than just receive her flirtations, he had been able to actively return her flirtations with his own. He didn’t want to end their conversation but he did not want to burden Keystone with the procession of his emotions. He especially did not want to lose the fiery vibe of their conversation that had been going on earlier.

> _FO- Perhaps we could get back to talking about kisses?_
> 
> _R- OK._
> 
> _R- We can do that._
> 
> _FO- I do mean it, you know. I would be honoured if you would be my first kiss._
> 
> _R- I know you mean it._
> 
> _R- You are not prone to exaggeration._
> 
> _R- As far as I know._

He wondered if her mouth would be as soft as he imagined it. Before he realized it, the message was sent. In his sleepy state, he had typed out his thoughts and sent it to her.

> _FO- I wonder if your mouth would be as soft as I am imagining it._

He felt like his heart was about to tear itself from his chest and run across the ship to throw itself out the airlock. What in the wide galaxy was he DOING? This was beyond inappropriate! He should put a stop to this immediately. He should apologize for the lapse of judgement, break off the connection, and not return to it until he could be assured he would not overstep his boundaries again! But his fears and embarrassment were put to rest at her next message.

> _R- Let’s say it is._
> 
> _R- Then what?_

He wasn’t sure what she was expecting him to do next. She was not accusing him of inappropriate behavior or demanding an apology or asking for an explanation for what he had said.

> _FO- I don’t understand. What are you asking me?_
> 
> _R- If we kissed… what would you do next?_

He was shaking now; underneath the sheets his cock was suddenly very interested in what was happening on his screen, thickening eagerly. He resisted the ridiculous urge to scold it as if it were a separate entity from him.

He was not so ignorant of what two consenting adults did under certain circumstances, neither was he unaware of the creativity people could think of when they desired intimacy but were separated by obstacles such as distance. He had never thought that he would find himself in such a situation, especially with a Resistance fighter. Was he really going to do this?

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, attempting to assemble something resembling a coherent thought. He didn’t know how to do this in person, but maybe… just maybe… he could plan it out in a way? It was only words on a screen, so if he did something wrong, it wouldn’t be as embarrassing. If she laughed at him, he wouldn’t actually have to hear it.

> _FO- I would keep kissing you. Slide my tongue over your lips to get a taste of you. Let you guide me._

Oh, he hoped this was what she had in mind; that he hadn’t read her incorrectly. Maybe he should have let her take the lead and follow suit.

> _R- Good instincts._
> 
> _R- Are you alone?_
> 
> _FO- Yes._
> 
> _R- Me too._
> 
> _R- Are you undressed?_
> 
> _FO-No, I’m wearing an undershirt and some sleeping pants._
> 
> _R- Take them off for me?_
> 
> _FO- Are you serious?_
> 
> _R- I’m naked._
> 
> _R- I’d like it if you are too._

At first he hadn’t understood why she had wanted him to be nude. She couldn’t see him, why would it matter if he was dressed or not? But the moment he knew that she was naked, that she was somewhere in the galaxy, in her bed, naked and talking to him like this; he understood. She wanted to know that he was as vulnerable and open as she was at that moment.

He considered remaining as he was and just telling her he had undressed. That wouldn’t be fair though and surely there was no harm in it? He stood and undressed, shivering a little in the cool air before diving back under the covers of his bed. The only other place he had ever completely undressed for was his refresher.

> _FO- All right. I’ve undressed._
> 
> _R- Good._
> 
> _R- Now we’re on an even playing field._
> 
> _R- And, to be honest, I like picturing you somewhere off in a star destroyer._
> 
> _R- Naked in your bed, thinking of me._
> 
> _FO- Even though you have no idea what I look like?_
> 
> _R- You have no idea what I look like either._
> 
> _FO- True enough._
> 
> _R- Where were we?_
> 
> _R- I’m afraid I got a little distracted, thinking of you._
> 
> _FO- Kissing, I believe. I would want you to guide me to best please you._
> 
> _R- Right._
> 
> _R- Well…_
> 
> _R- I’d let you deepen the kiss, twining my tongue with yours._
> 
> _R- I’d wrap my arms around you to keep you close._
> 
> _R- My hands would touch you everywhere_
> 
> _R- Running up and down your shoulder blades._

He swallowed hard, if she did that in reality, she would encounter several long scars in the process. Still, he didn’t think this was a good time to point that out. This was fantasy after all and he didn’t want to ruin it with a cold dose of childhood pain.

Instead, he chose to close his eyes and try to imagine what gentle hands on his skin would feel like. He shivered, although this time it was not from being cold. He took a deep breath, exhaling slowly as he considered what to write back to her.

> _FO- I’d shiver in response. You would be so gentle. My skin would ache for more of your touch._
> 
> _R- Oh, Fulcrum._
> 
> _R- You haven’t had many gentle touches in your life, have you?_
> 
> _FO- No. None that I can recall._
> 
> _R- I’d slide my hands up along the back of your neck, my fingers playing with your hair._
> 
> _R- I’d pull you down for another kiss, one that I would deepen this time._
> 
> _R- You would taste like that Corellian whiskey you like._
> 
> _R- It would be the only time I like the taste too._

He moaned, just a soft noise as he exhaled that reverberated through his thin chest. A few provocative words and he was fully hard and aching! This was so far out of his admittedly limited realm of experience… His fingers trembled as he reported to her what had just occurred.

> _FO- Stars, you just made me moan out loud._
> 
> _R- I bet you sound amazing._
> 
> _R- And then?_
> 
> _FO- I don’t know. I can’t think very clearly right now. But I don’t want to stop._
> 
> _R- Don’t worry, let me take care of you._
> 
> _R- Just lay back and relax and type when you get inspired._
> 
> _FO- That I can do.-_
> 
> _R- Good. Just use your hands for now._
> 
> _R- I’m going to tell you what I want to do to you._
> 
> _R- I want you to do what I say._
> 
> _R- It might be a little weird at first._
> 
> _R- But it’ll feel good, I promise._
> 
> _FO- And you will do the same?_
> 
> _R- Yes._
> 
> _FO- By all means then. Proceed._

On Ajan Kloss, in her tiny quarters, Rose bit her bottom lip. She was sitting cross-legged on her bunk, blankets on her lap and the poor, battered datapad on top of the blankets. Oh stars, she was actually doing this, wasn’t she? She was going to talk about sex with someone whose name she didn’t even know. She didn’t even know what he looked like! She had done this before a few times, back when she’d been a dumb teenager infatuated with a boy from another mining settlement. Being young, they had not been allowed to be alone together. They had improvised in this manner with neither set of parents ever knowing. But that had been before she had a practical knowledge of sex. So hopefully this method would prove to have matured along with her.

Well, she was nothing if not resourceful and creative.

> _R- Lie back and imagine me kneeling next to you._
> 
> _R- My hand sliding over your chest._
> 
> _R- Just touching you, getting a feel for your skin, for your heartbeat._

She took a deep breath, fingers actually shaking a tiny bit. Fuck, if she was this nervous just typing things, how was she going to act if she ever got a chance to meet this man in person?

> _R- I lean over you, kissing along your collarbone._
> 
> _R- Up along your neck._
> 
> _R- I slide one of my hands down along your side._
> 
> _R- Over your stomach._
> 
> _R- Not quite yet going where you want me to._
> 
> _R- Yet._
> 
> _FO- Stars, my heart is beating so fast. I want to touch you. I reach up around you, steadying you so you won’t lose your balance. You’re so soft against my hands._

She hadn’t expected to get anything from him this quickly. She’d even let him off the hook for responding constantly. Men, in her experience, tended to lose any sense of coherence when trying to type and jerk off at the same time. Apparently, Fulcrum was determined to actually do his part.

> _R- My skin is hot under your touch._
> 
> _R- The tips of my tits brush over your chest when I shift so I can kiss you._
> 
> _R- I want another of your whiskey kisses._

First one hand and then the other left the datapad to slide over her breasts, giving herself a slight pause to try and replicate what they wrote. Her nipples were already hard, making her gasp when her fingers ran over them. A familiar ache began to gather between her legs. It had been a while since she’d had a chance to do this and she was immensely glad that she didn’t share quarters with anyone else.

> _FO- I slide my hands along your sides to cup your breasts. I use my thumbs to move over your nipples. I want to make sure you’re enjoying this too._

She drew in a deep breath, mimicking the words before her; before she had to grab the datapad again to write back to Fulcrum.

> _R- Your hands feel good on me._
> 
> _R- I moan for you, letting you know how much I like it._
> 
> _R- I start kissing my way down your body, over your chest, over your stomach._
> 
> _R- Are you hard?_
> 
> _FO- Yes. Very much so. I’ve been hard since we started talking about kissing._
> 
> _R- Wow._
> 
> _R- Didn’t know I was that seductive._
> 
> _FO- I cannot speak for anyone else; but you certainly are to me._
> 
> _R- Smooth._
> 
> _R- Now I want you to wrap your hand around your cock._
> 
> _R- Pretend it’s me._
> 
> _FO- Sweet stars, I’m shaking._
> 
> _R- Good._
> 
> _R- I stroke my fingers over you._
> 
> _R- Root to tip, squeezing around the head._

Back on the Steadfast, Hux was gasping softly as he stroked himself. He couldn’t ever recall being this hard before. Granted, he’d never had this level of stimulation before either. His hips were trembling already, but he didn’t allow himself to thrust up into his hand. Not yet. He did not want this to be over too soon. He’d pleasured himself before, but not like this. His previous episodes of masturbation had been brief and perfunctory; just an alleviation of a bodily need so he could concentrate properly afterwards. No more special than fatigue or hunger, which he also tended to ease as seldom as possible.

> _R- Keep going._
> 
> _R- Just go slow._
> 
> _R- As slow as you can manage._

He drew in a shaking breath, closing his eyes as he deliberately slowed his stroke. He’d never taken his time before and he had to admit this was raising his threshold the longer he held out.

> _FO- I want to touch you. I need to touch you._
> 
> _R- Tell me how you would touch me._
> 
> _R- I run my hands from your breasts to along your back; pull you back up to me so I can kiss you again. You’re so soft and lush against me._

Rose had shifted on her bed, laying half on her front with the datapad just to the side so she could reach over and type with one hand. Her other hand slid over her skin gently, as she thought of what Fulcrum would do. Lush, he’d said. What a sweet word to use.

She was about to start typing again when another message from Fulcrum came through.

> _FO- One hand drifts downwards, over your rear and the back of your thigh, back up along your hip and belly. I want to touch you between your legs. May I?_

She couldn’t help but smile. Interesting. He was asking for consent even though they weren’t actually touching each other. But he apparently wanted to avoid even that sort of deceit between them. Rose was touched by the sweetness of Fulcrum’s request.

> _R- Please do._
> 
> _R- I’m so wet and aching for you._

Hux had to grit his teeth and stop stroking himself at those words, otherwise he would have spilled right then and there. The idea that somewhere in the galaxy, there was a woman who actually wanted him and was touching herself while wishing it was him was utterly intoxicating. He sympathized with the inherent frustration, as well. He was sorely missing the sensation of her on top of him, the sound of another’s pleasure.

> _FO- My fingers are shaking when I slip them down between your thighs, through your slick folds. Getting a feel for you. Learning what you like._

He had only the haziest idea of what an aroused woman would feel like. They never covered this subject at the Academy and he had never been one to watch pornographic holovids. That did not stop his imagination. She would be soft and hot and wet and tight. His thin chest rose as he had to take a deep breath in an effort to control himself.

Rose had to bite her bottom lip to not make too much noise. If she moaned too loudly, someone might hear and come to investigate and then she would just have to die on the spot. She managed to get her hand down between her legs, fingers parting her lips gently. True to her word, she was indeed very wet. Even the first tentative touch sent shockwaves of pleasure through her. Gods, it had never felt like this before. Even real sex had not felt like this!

She stifled a yelp as her fingers found her aching clit, two fingers sliding along either side of it gently, just enough to cause that swelling feeling of pleasure. Her hips bucked, seeking more; her insides attempted to grasp at something that wasn’t there. A little more shifting and she was able to position her hand in a way that her thumb could flick over her clit while two fingers toyed around the sensitive entrance of her cunt. Her typing was definitely going to suffer between the shaking and having only one free hand.

> _R- Stars, I have never been this wet._
> 
> _R- I don’t know how long I can wait to have you inside of me._

Her fingers were going to have to do, but imagining a hard cock in her instead helped immensely. It had been way too long. This was the most erotic thing to happen to her in at least four years. She slid two fingers inside of herself, curling and twisting them slowly.

> _R- I pull away only so I can straddle you._
> 
> _R- My hands are on your chest for balance._
> 
> _R- I reach back to grab your cock._
> 
> _R- I guide your cock inside of me. You’re so thick._
> 
> _R- You stretch me open._

Hux groaned low in his chest, his hips thrusting up. The fantasy of sliding into her soft, slick heat was enough to start pushing him past the point of no return.

> _FO- I hold your hips to keep you steady. I thrust up into you. You’re so tight around me. I won’t last long like this._

That was putting it lightly, he was already trembling and his heart felt like it was going burst out of his chest. Pumping himself more quickly, though with less rhythm, he moaned out loud, a sound from deep in his chest. A fine sheen of sweat gleamed on his skin, though for once this didn’t bother him in the least. If anything, it added to the entire experience of feeling hot and hard and desperate.

Hux snapped his hips up hard, spilling against his own hand as he came in tight, all-consuming pulses. He snarled through gritted teeth. Even as he spiraled back down into reality, aftershocks zinged through him, making his limbs twitch.

Thrusting her fingers in and out of her wet slit, Rose bit her pillow to keep from screaming. Her entire body wanted to curl around this pleasure and ride it out for as long as she could. Almost sobbing, she came in a tumbling crash, writhing as wave after wave of pleasure reverberated through her entire body.

> _R- Did you come too?_
> 
> _FO- Yes. Sweet stars, yes. I don’t even have words for what that was._
> 
> _R- Me neither. That was amazing._
> 
> _R- I don’t think I ever came so hard in my life._

Still panting, Hux pushed his hair back from his brow with his free hand. The other needed to be wiped off quickly before the spilled seed had a chance to dry and become even more of a problem. With his legs still a bit weak, he managed to drag himself to the refresher and wash off both his hand and anywhere else that had been soiled in the process. He would take a full-on shower before reporting for duty. But first, he wanted to finish his conversation with Keystone. Before he could send his message, she had already sent hers.

> _R- You okay?_
> 
> _FO- Yes. Just out of breath. My knees are shaking._
> 
> _R- Me too. For being new to this, you’re pretty good._
> 
> _FO- Am I? I am glad you found pleasure. I was hoping I could help in that respect._
> 
> _R- You did. A lot._
> 
> _FO- It’s late. Or early, depending. I have to be on the bridge in 45 minutes and I will need to wash before that._
> 
> _R- Oh, damn._
> 
> _R- I kept you up all night, didn’t I?_
> 
> _FO- But I agreed to it and I wanted to stay up with you._
> 
> _R- When will you get a chance to sleep?_
> 
> _FO- 1800._
> 
> _R- That’s over twelve hours from now!_
> 
> _R- Can’t you tell them you’re ill or something and sleep in?_
> 
> _FO- I’ll be fine. This will not be the first time I’ve worked a rotation without sleep._
> 
> _R- That’s not a good thing, Fulcrum._
> 
> _FO- No, I suppose not. But there’s nothing for it right now. I shall sleep when I get back to my quarters after my shift._
> 
> _R- Okay. I’ll let you sleep tonight._
> 
> _R- If we touch base tonight, I’ll be tempted to keep you up all night again._
> 
> _FO- In that case, sleep well. Unless I have information that requires immediate delivery, I shall contact you in 36 hours or so?_
> 
> _R- Yes._
> 
> _R- Goodbye, Fulcrum.-_
> 
> _FO- Goodbye, Keystone._


	6. Chapter 6

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table._  
 _You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss._  
-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

> _FO- Keystone._

Rose stared at the datapad, shakily pushing the tears off her cheeks. Was she seeing things? She had to be seeing things. But those eight letters on the screen did not go away no matter how hard she rubbed her eyes.

> _R- Fulcrum?_
> 
> _R- Is that you?_
> 
> _R- Please say it’s you._
> 
> _FO- Ro’sham’bo._

Relief bloomed in Rose’s chest.

> _R- Oh, thank the stars._
> 
> _R- What happened?_
> 
> _R- They said you were shot._
> 
> _FO- You were right. Pryde tried to execute me right on the spot. He shot me in the chest with a blaster rifle. The armor was the only thing that kept me from dying before I even hit the floor. I did get knocked unconscious though, so everyone thought I was truly dead._

Rose choked back a sob of relief, typing faster as her fingers remembered their purpose. She needed to help him. She needed to get him somewhere safe, somewhere she could retrieve him from. Her heart was beating so hard against her ribs that she was having difficulty breathing.

> _R- Where are you now?_
> 
> _R- Are you safe?_
> 
> _FO- Not entirely. One of my more loyal officers was tasked with disposing of my body. Luckily, I came to before he could toss me out an airlock. He agreed to take me to the shuttle I’d prepped instead._
> 
> _R- You’re off the_ Steadfast _then?_
> 
> _FO- Yes. But we have nowhere to go. Lt. Mitaka and I need coordinates to the rendezvous point._
> 
> _R- Your officer is with you?_
> 
> _FO- Yes. I daresay his loyalty is to me specifically instead of to the First Order as a whole. He didn’t want me to be wounded and alone in space. Also, I did not want him to suffer a similar fate without the advantage of armor. If Pryde figured me out, he would figure Mitaka out too.-_
> 
> _R- How is he with this whole ‘helping the Resistance’ thing?_
> 
> _FO- Surprisingly level-headed and accepting. I believe he’s been as disillusioned with the First Order as I have. He’s trustworthy._
> 
> _R- OK, I’m sending you coordinates to a nearby moon called J’qen._
> 
> _R- I’ll come pick you up from there._
> 
> _FO- Coordinates received. We’ll be there in three hours._
> 
> _R- Be safe. Contact me if ANYTHING happens._
> 
> _FO- Will do._

Rose ran off to find Leia, datapad tucked under her arm. She was not letting that glorious, ancient, ridiculous tech out of her sight. Leia, Dameron, and Kaydel were still standing around the data display, talking quietly, apparently trying to pinpoint where the _Steadfast_ was.

“He’s alive,” she blurted out as she skidded to a stop. “He’s alive. He contacted me over the secure comm. Pryde did shoot him, but he was wearing body armor. One of his officers got him out.”

Leia looked at her in surprise then closed her eyes in relief. “Thank goodness. We need to bring him here. Where is he?”

“I sent him coordinates to J’qen. He and Lt. Mitaka are on their way there.” At Poe’s look, she added, “Mitaka wants to defect too… he’s just as sick of the First Order as we are.”

“Guess we should go get them, then,” Poe nodded, although he didn’t look happy.

“I’m going with you. I’m his liaison; he won’t trust anyone but me.” Rose insisted.

“Fine, fine. I’d rather not have to talk to the ginger menace at all. You can talk to him all you want.” Poe tipped his head at Finn. “Finn! Let’s go!”

After a brief explanation to Finn about what they were doing, all three of them were on the Falcon, heading for J’qen. Rose couldn’t relax. In the span of 24 hours, she’d found out her contact was Hux, that he was dead, and that he was still alive albeit wounded.

Fulcrum, the man she’d spent so many nights talking to, who had given her such pleasure just with words… was Armitage Hux, the cold and calculating general who’d brought Starkiller to life. He’d told her so much more than she’d ever known about General Hux; his abusive father, the death of his mother, the fact that he had no one in his life except his cat. No one else knew these things about him, of this she was absolutely sure. He’d never lied to her. Not once. He’d spied for them. He’d given them invaluable intel for over a year. He’d saved Poe, Finn, and Chewie at great personal risk and had nearly died for it.

She’d never really paused to consider him as a man, past the image of a cruel First Order general. She thought about it, from all of the holos she’d seen of General Hux, if she stripped away all of the propaganda and hatred, he was handsome. Young, sharp-featured, tall, slim… he was definitely a good-looking man. Maybe he was not to everyone’s taste, but she certainly liked it. She thought back to the night they’d pleasured each other through messages, trying to re-picture it with Hux instead of a faceless man. She swallowed hard, thinking of him laying back in bed and stroking himself, pale skin flushed, flame-colored hair askew.

She regretfully pushed the reverie away as she felt a twinge of arousal at her core. Now was not the time for daydreaming. She had to concentrate on how to make sure Hux and Mitaka would be all right. She already knew Hux had an injured leg and, even with armor in place, a blaster shot at close range must have injured him more than he let on as well. Broken ribs, maybe… bruises, absolutely. He said he’d blacked out, so he must have hit his head as well.

She had no idea who Mitaka was. However, if Hux trusted him and she trusted Hux, then her trust had to extend to this loyal lieutenant. Hopefully, he would adapt well to life outside of the First Order. The Resistance wasn’t nearly as regulated as the First Order. People like her flourished with a lack of protocols. But people raised in the strict environs of the First Order might have a hard time working without a designated schedule. She’d seen enough evidence of that with Finn. He’d spent a good amount of time having to be reminded that he didn’t need to wait until he was told to go eat or sleep or use the fresher. As officers, she figured Hux and Mitaka might not be quite that bad, but they still might chafe without a set of inviolable rules to follow.

“Rose, we’re coming up on J’qen,” Finn called from the cockpit.

She stood and headed down the hallway to them, sitting in the seat behind Finn. “I hope they made it okay. Fulcrum… I mean… Hux has been shot. Twice. I’m pretty sure he hit his head on the floor too.”

“Just what we need; a concussed Hux,” Finn sighed.

Rose flicked him in the back of his head with her fingers. “You’re the one who shot him in the leg when he asked you to shoot him in the arm.”

“It was an impulse! I was pissed at him! That jerk scared the shit out of me for the better part of my life!” Finn insisted.

“Please. You were more scared of Phasma than him. You never even spoke to him,” she pointed out.

“Doesn’t mean the top brass didn’t scare all of us. Hard not to be scared of the guy who has your balls in his hand and might squeeze them just for the sheer fun of it.” Finn turned in his seat to fix her with a look dangerously approaching a glare.

“Just go easy on him, Finn,” she met his gaze evenly. “He’s done a LOT for us over the past year. And you have no idea what kind of life he’s had. He never chose to be a part of the First Order either.”

That surprised Finn; he blinked at her in confusion. “What? How do you know? Because he told you?”

It was Rose’s turn to glare. “Yes, because he told me. And he didn’t even want to tell me. I just pestered him until he did.”

“Guys, you can continue this debate later. There they are,” Poe interrupted them, pointing out of the windshield to a somewhat battered-looking First Order shuttle.

Rose tore out of the Falcon like a shot, running to the shuttle. It hadn’t crashed, it was actually set down quite cleanly. It was smoking due to a few canon blasts that had apparently skimmed it. The Steadfast must have shot at them in their escape.

“Hux!” she called, running to the closed ramp. “Mitaka!”

After a second, the ramp lowered and she sprinted up it. She found Hux laying on a low bench that was probably meant to have a row of troopers sitting on it. His uniform shirt was open and stained with blood, as was the hastily-applied bandage underneath. He looked paler than normal. The bandage around his left leg was also bloodied, although it looked like it had dried at least. He attempted to sit up once she was in view, but hissed in pain and had to lay back down.

“Keystone,” he winced.

“Rose.” she corrected him, “My name’s Rose.”

“Rose,” he repeated, looking at her curiously. “Weren’t you the Haysian girl from the _Supremacy_? The one who… bit me?”

“That would be me,” she admitted, her cheeks heating. Shit, she’d forgotten about that. What if he was angry now? She had humiliated him in front of his men.

“Figures I would fall for someone who tried to bite my hand off,” he said in a slightly drowsy tone before closing his eyes and passing out.

From the cockpit, a dark-haired man emerged, his expression quite earnest and anxious. “Lieutenant Mitaka, ma’am. I serve under General Hux. He’s lost a lot of blood. I gave him a sedative, but I’m not a medic. I didn’t want to risk causing more damage.”

“He didn’t mention that he was this bad off or we would have brought our medic,” Rose shook her head. “Gather whatever supplies you need from here and take them over to our ship. Commander Dameron and Finn can move him.”

“What are you volunteering me for?” Poe asked as he headed up the ramp, though he stopped dead when he saw Hux. “Shit. He looks awful.”

“That’s putting it mildly. Can you and Finn carry him to the Falcon?” Rose asked, brushing away the little voice of panic in her head.

“I could probably carry him by myself. He looks like he weighs maybe one-twenty soaking wet,” Poe shook his head.

“I’d rather both of you do it. We don’t know how badly he’s injured and he’s a bit stoned at the moment,” Rose said, putting her hand flat on Poe’s chest when he made to pick Hux up. “Better to have both of you do it if only for stability.”

“OK, no problem. Finn! Help me carry Hugs!” he yelled over his shoulder.

“Are you going to keep calling him that?” Rose sighed softly.

“Probably. It’s better than other things I’ve called him over the years,” Poe shrugged as Finn came up the ramp.

“Will the lot of you stop talking about me like I’m not here?” Hux grumbled from his prone spot.

“Look alive, General. Finn and I are going to cart you over to Falcon. Apologies in advance if we jostle you,” Poe decided to temper his innate sarcasm for once.

“Just get it over with, if it’s all the same to you,” Hux nodded, closing his eyes again.

After a few trips for supplies, including a ventilated box that held a rather unhappy Millicent, and one very slow two-man stretcher carry, they were all on the Falcon. Hux had been deposited on the same bunk that she’d occupied after Crait. Ignoring everyone else, she sat next to him. Taking one of his hands in hers, she couldn’t help the urge to squeeze it gently. “You’ll be alright. I’ll take care of you,” she assured him, even though she wasn’t sure if he heard her or not.

Mitaka had gone into the cockpit and was readily answering any question Poe and Finn had for him as they took off and headed back to Ajan Kloss. What had happened after they’d escaped the Steadfast, why Hux had been dealt with so abruptly, what sort of directive the First Order had now. Mitaka appeared to have shed any loyalty to the First Order the second it had turned against Hux.

“Why so loyal to him?” Finn asked, genuinely confused.

“It might not look like it to those outside of the Order, but he does care about his men. He was always arguing with Kylo Ren on our behalf. Kylo Ren would have happily sacrificed every officer and trooper we had to get to Skywalker and Snoke would have let him. It was the General who made sure we could maneuver with as few casualties as possible. And… for me, personally… he protected me,” Mitaka admitted, red in the cheeks.

“Protected you? From what?” Poe asked, curious now.

“From Kylo Ren. From other officers who sought to use me as a shield, so to speak,” Mitaka said. “There was one time, when we were chasing that BeeBee unit; we received word that the droid had escaped on this ship with you-“ he pointed at Finn, “-and with the scavenger girl. The communications officer ordered me to deliver the news to Kylo Ren. The General was off-duty at the time, so I had no recourse but to obey. Kylo Ren nearly killed me, had me by the throat. The General came in and stopped him, then gave the communications officer a dress down for sending me instead of contacting him with the news. He made sure none of us ever had to face Kylo Ren ourselves. He always took it upon himself to deal with him, even after Kylo Ren became Supreme Leader and… became even more volatile. The General always stood between us and him.”

“Huh,” Poe made a small noise of surprise. “Who knew?”


	7. Chapter 7

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table.  
You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss.  
_-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

Once they arrived back on Ajan Kloss, Harter Kalonia was quick to have Hux carefully transferred from the Falcon to the medbay. In short order she had him on a drip and started tending his injured leg, which was fractured by hairline. The chest wound was more concerning. The rifle blast had broken several of his ribs, one of which had broken through his skin, hence the blood. Kalonia took him to surgery immediately, needing to set that rib and the others before he bled to death.

Rose stayed outside of the surgery bay, pacing anxiously. She knew Kalonia was the best doctor the Resistance had available that Hux could hope for. She’d been Leia’s personal physician for decades. Still, Rose couldn’t help but worry. It had been hours since he’d been injured and he hadn’t gotten real medical treatment until now. What if he’d lost too much blood? What if his bones couldn’t be set properly?

“Rose,” Leia’s voice broke through her rising panic and Rose stopped pacing. Leia’s look gave her the sinking feeling that this was not the first time she’d called her name. “Rose, sit down, please. You’re making me nervous.”

“Yes, General Organa,” she said, quickly sitting down with her hands on her knees.

Leia sat next to her with a sigh. “Kalonia knows what she’s doing. He’ll be fine.”

“I know. I know he will be, it’s just-“

“You love him.”

Rose’s mouth fell open as though she’d been slapped, looking at Leia in shock.

Leia just nodded. “I thought you might. Kaydel noted that you were logging a lot of hours talking to him. More than would have been necessary for simple intel exchange. The transcripts you passed on to us appeared to be more than professional. He’s a very complex man… and you have a kind nature. That’s part of why I passed Poe over for you to be the spy handler.”

“You knew Hux was our spy?” she asked, shaking her head.

“No. But I knew our spy was high up in the First Order. Someone who commanded troops and had probably masterminded some acts against us. I feared few of us would have been able to get past that idea and form a rapport,” Leia explained.

Rose sighed and wrapped her arms around herself. “Do you think it’s stupid? I mean… he built Starkiller. He destroyed the Hosnian System. He’s responsible for billions of deaths. And yet…”

“Yet you love him anyway. You know him now. You know his heart. To you, he is far more than just an angry face in a propaganda holo,” Leia nodded. “It’s not stupid at all, Rose. It’s hope. It’s proof to everyone in the Resistance that the First Order is made up of people, just like we are. Not heartless machines. People.”

“But why me?” Rose asked. “I’m no one special.”

“Of course you are, Rose. You’ve suffered loss in this war. You’ve lost your planet, your parents, your sister. You didn't join to fight for a cause, you fought for what you believed was right. I know you’re not a fan of the New Republic. Nor are you accepting of the First Order’s acumen. You’re not a politician. You’re not a commander. You fight for what you love, for what you hold dear. That’s very special and very much needed these days.”

Rose blushed and looked down, uncertain how to feel about this amount of praise. “Thank you, General.”

“You’re very welcome, dear,” Leia reached over to pat Rose’s hand.

Kalonia chose that moment to emerge from the surgery, her expression neutral as always. “I was able to repair the damage to his bones. Luckily his lungs were scraped, but not punctured. He’s in recovery now and will probably need a few hours for the sedation to wear off.”

“How long before he is fully recovered?” Leia asked.

“A few days with the bacta packs. He should stay on the drip until tomorrow to help combat the blood loss he suffered.”

“Can I see him?” Rose asked, her voice a bit more anxious than she would have liked.

“I insist. He’ll need someone to stay with him. Waking up in a strange place surrounded by people he doesn’t know would be distressing to anyone. I don’t want him pulling out his line or trying to unwrap his bandages,” Kalonia nodded. “If you need anything for staying here for the night, I suggest you go get it now.”

“Yes, doctor. I will right away. Thank you!” Rose exclaimed, halfway out the door before she was even done speaking.

As soon as she was out of the medbay, she saw Mitaka talking to Finn, looking every bit as worried as she’d felt. He was holding Millicent in her vented box. She smiled and went over to him, touching his shoulder. “Hey, he’s out of surgery and he’ll be alright. Dr. Kalonia said that with a few days of rest, he’ll be right as rain.”

Mitaka’s instant relief mirrored her own. “Thank the stars. With all of the blood he lost and the blow to his head, I was afraid… well, I’m glad I was wrong.”

“Finn, can you look after Mitaka?” she asked.

Finn surprised her by grinning. “Way ahead of you, Rose. Dopheld here is gonna be bunking with Beaumont. He’s ready to interview this poor man to death.”

Rose laughed softly. “Well, at least you have a ready-made friend. Don’t let Beaumont keep you up all night, all right?”

“No, miss. I won’t,” Mitaka straightened his shoulders and saluted Rose.

Finn patted his shoulder. “You don’t have to do that here, pal. Except maybe to General Organa. At least at first.”

“My name’s Rose Tico. You can call me Rose,” she assured him.

“Rose, then. Thank you,” Mitaka offered a hint of a smile.

“You’re welcome.”

With that, she resumed her dash to her quarters, packing things a bit haphazardly into her duffel bag. She didn’t really have much in the way of personal items, so she pretty much packed up everything she owned. Slinging it over her shoulder, she headed right back to the medbay and was directed to the small room where Hux was recovering.

He lay on the bed, as pale as the sheets, his ginger hair in stark contrast. His uniform had been a lost cause and the recovery droids had apparently put him in some loose pajama pants and an equally-loose shirt with a v-shaped neck. Bruises from his chest crept up towards his neck, just visible at the bottom of the vee. Rose swallowed hard and set down her bag, heading to his side. There was a chair set up at an angle to him, presumably for her to sit in. However, she was in no mood to be separated from him for a moment longer. The bed was more than wide enough for both of them. She crawled next to him, lying on her side with her arm tucked under her head and the other resting on his chest, feeling for his heartbeat. Calm and quiet in the dimly lit room, she allowed herself the chance to look at him more closely than she had during their single, previous meeting.

He was tall, she’d remembered that correctly. His hair was not quite as outrageously orange as she might have remembered, although that could have been the fault of the awful lighting that the First Order ship had. It was quite ginger though, as were his eyelashes, now that she had time to consider him. It was rather beautiful actually, especially against his pale skin. He had high cheekbones, sharp against the softer angles of his face. His mouth was wide and actually very pink now that his blood was back up to normal levels. Although he was covered by sheets and a blanket at present, it was obvious that he had a very slender build, something that she had not noticed on the Supremacy. Granted, he’d been in his uniform then, including a somewhat huge coat, giving him a more broad-shouldered look. She’d never really been into huge, beefy men, preferring those of a more elegant stature.

With a gentle hand, she slowly moved a lock of his hair back from his brow. His breath deepened for a moment and he moved his head towards her touch, though he stayed asleep. Her hand returned to his chest and she closed her eyes, only intending to rest for a few moments.

A few hours later, Hux began to stir, first becoming aware of a slight weight on his chest. His throat felt incredibly dry and he couldn’t quite remember when he’d fallen asleep. Last he recalled, he was… on the shuttle with Mitaka. They were on their way to some moon so that Keystone could retrieve them. Now, it was quiet and dark. He could hear an intermittent beeping… medical equipment, he gathered. He must be in a medical facility of some kind.

He attempted to stretch his shoulders, only to find that the movement was restricted. He was pinned down in a way, although when he opened his eyes, he was able to see that it was just some blankets over top of him, tucked so that he wouldn’t dislodge them in his sleep. And on his right… a young woman was stretched out alongside of him, one of her hands resting on his chest. Keystone. This was Keystone, he realized a bit distantly. She had come to fetch him from the shuttle. He remembered seeing her very briefly. She’d told him her name. What was it?

“Rose,” he said softly, his voice low and raspy. The sensation made him cough weakly, his chest throbbing with pain as he did.

She stirred, curling more closely to him for a moment, the weight and sensation making his heart stutter for a moment, as evidenced by the beeping tone. He tried to swallow, but his mouth and throat were too dry. Clearing his throat, however, was marginally more successful. She woke, blinking at him blearily for a second before she realized his eyes were open.

“Hey, you’re awake,” she said, shifting to a half-sitting up position. “How do you feel?”

“A bit disoriented. My chest hurts. My leg is numb,” he responded, his voice still very rough.

“You sound like you could use some water. Here, let me help you sit up.”

He almost refused her offer of help, the urge to not show weakness still very present in his psyche. But the sharp pain in his chest the second he tried to move himself upwards prevented him from actually protesting. A small but rather strong hand on his back helped him reach an upright position. Her other hand rested over his bandaged chest, to keep him from pitching forward.

“There you go,” Rose said, patting his shoulder, the contact making him flinch slightly. “Just sit tight for a minute. I’ll get you some water.”

He nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Once she was gone, he took a moment to take in his surroundings. This was admittedly more advanced than he had thought the Resistance might have. He’d been picturing tents and being laid out on a pallet on the ground. This was actually a proper medbay. Given the Resistance’s lack of proper resources, this was a very pleasant surprise. He wasn’t sure where they’d gotten the clothes he was wearing, but they were clean. It was a bit odd to have so much of his arms and his neck uncovered; he felt so exposed.

Rose returned swiftly with two cups, smiling at him as soon as she saw him. “Okay, water first. Then Kalonia said you could have something else. So I got you a cup of that Tarine tea you like for some unfathomable reason.”

“How did you know I like Tarine tea? I never mentioned that, did I?” he frowned.

“I asked Mitaka what you like to drink,” she explained easily. “Tarine tea. No sugar. No milk.”

“Well, he would know. I sent him to fetch me some on more than one occasion,” he nodded. “Is he all right? I seem to recall we were grazed once or twice when we fled the Steadfast.”

“He’s fine. Making friends with our resident historian, Beaumont,” she assured him, handing him the cup of water.

Suddenly, realization hit him, “Where’s Millicent?”

Rose rested a hand on his shoulder, calming him down. “She’s fine. She’s with Mitaka right now.”

He took it gratefully, relieved when his hand stayed steady. A few blessed sips later and he felt he was able to speak with his normal voice once more.

“Thank you, Miss Rose,” he said, proven right when his voice came out quite familiar.

“Just Rose, please. We don’t stand on ceremony around here.”

“I wasn’t certain of your rank.”

“Lieutenant General. I answer to General Organa directly, although Dameron is sometimes my direct superior, depending on the task,” she explained blithely enough. “But just call me Rose anyway. Everyone else does.”

“Rose,” he relented, testing the name out. “And now we know who the other is.”

She sat back in her chair a little, regarding him curiously. “Yeah. I have to admit. I never even considered that you could be our spy.”

He looked down at that, a bit distressed by that idea. It meant that whomever she’d pictured during that one night, it wasn’t him. He almost felt compelled to apologize for his deceit, even though it had been the entire point of the mission.

“Oh, hey, don’t make that face,” Rose said, leaning forward to touch his shoulder. “It’s not a bad thing. If anything, it shows how good you were at keeping your identity a secret.”

“I suppose,” he allowed, his gaze arrested by the sight of her hand on him. Everything in his body urged him to shake the touch off. That it was dangerous. That it would hurt him.

She followed his gaze and felt how tense he was under her hand. “Ah… right. You’re not used to casual affection. Sorry. I didn’t mean to push.” She pulled her hand away, albeit reluctantly.

“It’s not that, I just… I think I am not entirely myself at the moment,” he shook his head, immediately regretting it since it just sent a warning ache down his neck from the base of his skull.

“Well, no, I guess not. It’s been a pretty rough twenty-four hours for you. You’ve been shot twice, got your head bashed on the floor, nearly been thrown out an airlock, dragged onto a shuttle which was then shot at, gone into hyperspace for three hours while sedated, had surgery to repair your ribs and leg, and the anesthesia just wore off. That’s enough to put anyone off their game,” she reminded him with a wry smile.

He gave a slight huff, the closest thing he dared to a laugh. “I guess I should be slightly gentler with myself.”

“Do you remember us picking you up from the shuttle?” she asked, scooting her chair closer, her arms resting on the blank space of the bed she’d previously occupied.

“Vaguely. I remember you telling me your name, but that’s all I can recall.”

“You recognized me from the _Supremacy_.”

“The _Supremacy_? Why would we have met on the-“ Sudden realization silenced him as his eyes traced the shape of her face, those flashing, dark eyes. They were soft on him now, but he could clearly remember those eyes staring daggers at him. “The Otomak system. The girl with the pendant. You… bit my hand.”

She laughed! For a moment, he wanted to shrink into himself, assuming she was laughing at him. But no, there was no mocking tone to her voice or light of rebuke in her eyes. She was laughing at the remembered situation.

“I did. Yes. And you deserved it at the time. Honestly, your hand was right there and you even said the word bite. I had nothing left to lose at that point, so I bit you. I was so angry and I just wanted to leave my mark on you. But I knew it wouldn’t really injure you. You were wearing leather gloves,” she explained with a bright smile.

“Ah… yes… I suppose I did bring that upon myself,” he admittedly somewhat reluctantly.

“You demanded our execution right after. But we’re both still here… and on the same side now. Shall we let bygones be bygones then?” she suggested, holding out her hand.

He looked at her hand as though he thought it might turn into a snake and bite him. Not an entirely unfounded fear. Then, he took a deep breath and took her hand in his, holding it steady. “Agreed.”

She gave their clasped hands a quick bob, strength in her grasp despite how small her hand was. “Good,” she nodded. “Now all we have between us is the time we spent exchanging messages to each other.”

“All?” he echoed, mind inexorably tumbling back to that one night in particular.

Hers did the same apparently, judging by the color that bloomed on her cheeks. His heart twisted tightly, making him wonder if it was an emotional reaction or just some far-flung twinge from his mending ribs.

“Not to diminish everything that happened… between us… “ she assured him, still clutching his hand in hers. He found he had no desire to pull it back. Neither did she apparently.

“This is… It’s not how I pictured our first meeting,” he said softly, his tone somewhat regretful, as though it was his fault that things had not worked out as planned.

“Me either. But you’re alive and so am I. That counts for something, all things considered. Either one of us could have died without us ever meeting. This is better, right?”

“Yes. You do have a point there. I just wish I wasn’t quite so useless as I am at present,” he sighed, his father’s voice echoing behind his own.

“Useless? You’re recovering from severe injuries. Being useful isn’t something you need to worry about right now,” she said with a frown. “Your sole task right now is to heal. A few days and you’ll be able to leave the medbay.”

A few days didn’t seem too bad. He’d been afraid that it could take weeks to recover fully. However, he wasn’t sure what possible purpose he could serve. He had some information yet to give, but certainly not enough to justify the effort and supplies extended to mend him. He was an engineer, yes; but, the Resistance had to already have at least a small team of them. He was a tactician and strategist, but they’d always outpaced him before. He was redundant at best and utterly useless at worst.

His face must have betrayed his inner concerns because Rose released his hand only to reach up and touch his cheek. “Hey, don’t worry. I’m sure Leia’s already got some projects in mind for you and me to work on.”

“I’m not a communications specialist. Why would you and I be placed on the same team?” The question managed to distract him from the entirely foreign sensation of a gentle hand on his face.

“I’m not either. I’m the Engineering Corps commander. And I’ve been chomping at the bit to pick your brain. I do my research, you know. I know you were the mastermind behind the science of Starkiller. You designed the active tracking system. You helped develop the experimental TIEs. Frankly, you were wasted as a general; you should have been the head of R&D really,” she said, her tone quick and bright, oddly cheerful for someone listing his many sins.

“I worked very hard to become a general, thank you very much. Not that it matters now,” he sighed, a bit more angrily than he meant, jerking his face away from her fingers.

Her smile faded quickly. “Oh… no, I meant… I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to imply that you didn’t deserve your rank. I know you did. I just meant that… to me… it seems like you might have been happier in R&D than as a commander. Nothing to do with your skills… just an observation into your personality.”

His anger faded just as quickly, easily mollified by her soft apology. “No. Forgive me. I shouldn’t have snapped at you. I just… I tend to look for insults even when none are meant.”

“Think nothing of it. You’re not used to having moral support. Of course you’re a bit touchy about things like that.” She had pulled her hand back and it rested back on the side of the bed. He looked at it a bit wistfully, still aware of the fading warmth on his cheek.

“So, you’re an engineer,” he said, changing the subject neatly.

“Yeah, I used to be the extra mechanic here; although frankly, I was a glorified pipe-thumper to start,” she shrugged. “I was promoted mostly because our plan on the _Supremacy_ WOULD have worked if we hadn’t gotten caught.”

“I never did get around to asking; what were you doing on the _Supremacy_ anyway?” he asked, now curious.

“Oh, we were going to disable the active tracking temporarily. Just one cycle. Long enough for the Resistance to jump without you being able to see where to. Then the tracking would turn back on, so it would look like a malfunction rather than sabotage. Finn knew where the hardware was on the ship. I knew how to set the programming. And DJ… was able to get us past the shields and locked doors,” she explained, though her expression hardened at the mention of DJ.

“He did seem a bit overeager to make a bargain with us. I assumed he wasn’t Resistance.”

“Not even a little. We found him in jail on Canto Bight and he volunteered. We were strapped for time and couldn’t find the master codebreaker that we were actually sent to find.”

“Would it please you to know he did not get away as scott-free as you might think?”

She looked up at him questioningly. “This should be good.”

“He admitted to breaking past our security. Dangerous knowledge to admit to. I sent TIE fighters after him the moment he left the hangar. They blew that little yacht apart before he could jump to lightspeed.

“Good. Rotten traitor,” Rose couldn’t help the gleam of satisfaction from her eyes. “I hold him more responsible for what happened to our transports than I do you.”

“That being said, your plan was… actually quite clever. It would have worked if one of our droids hadn’t scanned yours and found it unregistered,” he nodded.

“It was one of the droids? Damn, I’m surprised you followed up. People so often dismiss the droids,” she was actually somewhat amused.

“I never discount droids. They are observant and far more likely to catch discrepancies than humans,” he shook his head.

“There’s another point in your favor,” she smiled.

“Another point? Am I racking up some kind of score?” he asked, bemused by the phrasing.

“Only for my own information,” she shrugged again. “Rest assured, you are well ahead of anyone else.”

That did please him for some unfathomable reason. He didn’t even know what he was being judged by, but he still found it a bit satisfying to be in the lead. He finished his cup of water and held his hand out for the tea. Luckily, she had procured it in an insulated cup, preserving the heat.

She smiled and handed it over, their fingers brushing briefly during the hand off. He swallowed tightly and lifted the cup to his lips to cover up how much even the most casual of touches was affecting him.

“Should we address the bantha in the room?” she asked, sitting back in her seat.

“You’re talking about that night when we…” he said, though he was unable to properly express what that night had even been. He had no word for what they’d done.

“When we… had holo-sex? Sort of?” Seemed she was just as lost for a word.

“We didn’t use the holonet. That’s a bit of a misnomer.” he corrected her.

“Comm-sex?”

“Comm-sex involves actually hearing each other. We were limited to visual messages.” he corrected her again.

“Textual intercourse?”

The face he made in response made her laugh.

“Well I don’t know what to call it. But whatever it was, it happened and it was… amazing.” she confided in him, “… and I don’t think either of us has forgotten?”

“No. No, I haven’t forgotten,” he shook his head, looking down into his tea pensively.

“And… am I correct in that… it was amazing for you too?” she asked, her tone imploring.

“Yes. Yes, very much so. It was… incredible,” he admitted softly, holding the cup with two hands to keep it steady.

“Was what you told me true? About never having been kissed before?” she asked, moving closer.

His cheeks colored instantly, brow furrowed. “Yes,” he gave the answer in a clipped voice, as though even the answer itself was shameful.

With careful hands, she divested him of his tea, setting it safely aside. Before he could even think to protest, she was sitting on the bed, facing him. Her hands cupped his cheeks and drew him forward, his mouth falling slightly open in surprise. Then she pressed her mouth over his, lingering, keeping the caress slow and sweet. He took in a sharp breath through his nose. He was frozen in place, his hands hovering over her sides without touching her.

Gently, she deepened the kiss, sliding her tongue past his slack lips. This woke him from his temporary stupor, a low moan emanating from his throat, his hands finally coming to rest along her upper arms. He kissed her in return, carefully moving his lips along hers, his tongue sliding along hers. He learned to tilt his head slightly to the side so they wouldn’t awkwardly bump noses, to catch his breath between kisses, to allow her to guide him and teach him.

When they finally parted, they were both panting softly, hands on each other’s shoulders, foreheads pressed together.

“Rose,” he breathed her name, his heart was beating so hard that he thought he might suffocate. The machine he was hooked up to was beeping emphatically, distractingly.

“It’s okay,” she said, not needing him to say anything further to know what he was getting at. “Just breathe, Hux.”

“Armitage,” he whispered, eyes still closed. “My name is Armitage.”

“Armitage,” she echoed, her accent making his name sound just different enough that he didn’t immediately hear his father’s voice behind it. “Just breathe, Armitage.”

He obeyed, taking a deep, somewhat shaky breath. The air comforted him right away, giving him the courage to open his eyes. With her face still so close to his, he could make out the rich brown irises of her eyes, the soft pink of her lips and her cheeks. She was breathing just as hard as he was, those beautiful, dark eyes searching his face for any sign of… what? Of approval? Permission?

Sweet little witch; as if he wasn’t already completely under her spell.

“Are you all right?” she asked, one hand moving to cup his cheek again. Concern replaced the uncertainty in her expression.

“Yes. Just… a bit overwhelmed,” he quickly assured her, tilting his head into her touch. Something about the warmth and simplicity of it soothed him to his very soul. He’d never considered touch to be a necessary sensation; that contact with another being would be so important. When was the last time he’d been touched without the intent to cause pain? He couldn’t even remember. Certainly not by his father. No one in the First Order would have dared attempt to touch him without his express permission; even Mitaka had asked before helping him to the escape shuttle and that hadn’t even been skin to skin contact. He’d always made very sure that as little of his skin showed as possible, always keeping his collar high and his gloves pulled in place. No, the last person to touch him in kindness was probably… his mother? He pushed that thought away quickly. He did not want to think about his mother right now. Not with the decidedly adult thoughts going through his mind.

“Me too,” she said breathlessly, a tinge of laughter to her voice. “I think that may be the first time kissing has actually left me feeling light-headed.”

A flush of pride flowed through him at that admission. “Truly?”

“Oh, yes,” she admitted, nuzzling against his neck gently, the touch making him shiver slightly. “You might be new at this, but you’re amazing at it.”

Breathless laughter escaped him as he pulled her closer, so she was sitting in the cradle of his legs, her head pillowed on his shoulder. This probably wasn’t great for his healing leg, but it didn’t hurt, so he couldn’t muster up the ability to care about it. “I have an excellent teacher,” he whispered against the top of her head.

She closed her eyes, resting against him lightly. She wouldn’t have believed it herself, but she was completely comfortable with him. He was warm and gentle wherever he touched her. His voice was low and soft, so different from the strident screaming she’d witnessed in the holos from Starkiller Base. With a small smile, she caught his right hand between hers, bringing it to her lips and placing a soft kiss to the finger that she’d bitten over a year ago. An apology. And a promise that she would never intentionally harm him again.

She kept his hand between hers, curling his fingers in hers and brushing another kiss across his knuckles. The gesture made him smile slightly, the light in his eyes tender. “Shouldn’t I be kissing the back of your hand? Seems appropriate.”

“You can if you want to,” she smiled, lifting her head so she could look at him properly.

He met her eyes, keeping them locked in place as he turned his hand over to grasp hers, bringing it to his mouth and pressing a tender, lingering kiss to the back of her hand, his breath warm on her skin. Still, he kept his gaze on her eyes, the rings of bright jade green around his pupils were so thin it almost looked like he had black eyes. What she expected to be a polite, slightly old-fashioned gesture was anything but.

Her breath caught and she bit her bottom lip, squirming a little as the light touch seemed to pool right through her, settling low in her belly.

“Oooh… that’s not fair,” she said in a shaky voice. “That should not be as sexy as you’re making it.”

“No?” he asked, eyes shining with amusement as he repeated the gesture.

“No, and I will not be held responsible for whatever it is I do to you if you keep doing that,” she huffed in feigned annoyance, though her expression was indulgent.

“Hmm, and just what is it you want to do to me?” he closed his eyes, moving his lips over her skin although he was not expressly kissing her.

“Fuck you senseless mostly,” was her immediate response, the abrupt profanity shocked him out of what he was doing. He drew back with a vaguely horrified expression.

“I beg your pardon?!” he exclaimed. “Language, Rose!”

She dissolved into gales of laughter, “Oh, don’t pretend like you’ve never sworn before.”

“I don’t make a habit of it! It’s unprofessional!” he cried at her statement, though his expression was shifting from horror to bemusement.

“This is not a professional situation,” she pointed out smugly.

He had no argument with that, so he just shook his head at her. “You are infuriating, Rose.”

“You’re welcome,” she quipped, leaning in to kiss the very tip of his nose impishly.

“What in the universe…?” he frowned, confused by the playful intimacy.

“It’s just a bit of casual affection,” she attempted to explain. “It’s just… cute? I guess? My parents used to do it to us when we were being silly. My mom would do it to my dad too if he was being grumpy. It always made him laugh, so it improved his mood.”

“Ah,” he nodded, although he didn’t really understand. Still, now was not the time to dwell on his truly abysmal childhood.

She cupped his cheek gently, coaxing him to look at her again. “I know. It’s okay. You’ll get used to this sort of thing. I’m a naturally affectionate person and… I’m very eager to be affectionate with you.”

“I am eager to be the subject of your affections. Although, I fear I cannot promise to be as affectionate in return. I don’t know how to be,” he sighed softly.

“You’ll learn. You’re completely brilliant; you will learn fast,” she assured him.

He paused, looking at her strangely. “You think I’m brilliant?”

“I know you’re brilliant! You are a genius! You must know that?” she declared with a smile.

His expression shifted from mildly surprised to genuinely moved, his eyes growing bright with the threat of tears. “I… I do know… that I am clever. I’ve had to be. I know I am more intelligent than your average man. But I’ve never… no one’s ever… “

“No one’s ever said it out loud to you?” she attempted to finish the sentence for him.

“I’ve rarely received praise of any form,” he shook his head, his voice soft and tight.

She shifted again, sitting on his lap with her legs on either side of his, facing him. This new position put them on an even keel, their height difference removed. She took his face in her hands, one hand smoothing his hair back from his brow before returning to his cheek.

“I think that you are utterly brilliant, unmatched in your field. You are incredibly handsome; skin pale as starlight and hair like fire, your eyes like shining jade. You’re tall and elegant, slender but with a core of beskar steel. Strong in will and body. I think you are wonderful.”

He shuddered in her grasp, flinching at certain words: pale, slender… will. She slid both of her hands back through his hair. “I mean it. You are beautiful.”

His eyes finally found hers again, searching her face for any sign that she was mocking him or lying to him. Yet, he found nothing but sincerity in those beguilingly dark eyes. “Beautiful…” he echoed, as though he’d never heard the word before.

“You are!” she exclaimed, leaning in to kiss him, adding a more emphasis to the insistence.

He moaned softly into the kiss, his heart pounding hard in his chest. His arms slid around her of their own accord, holding her close. “Oh, my sweet Rose… you are a balm to my soul.”

Her heart ached for him, for the poor, abused boy that he had once been, for the broken man he still was. She wanted nothing more than to heal him, to mend his heart and teach him to love. She already loved him, she knew. Between their long conversations over the past year and the handful of kisses they had shared today, she was aware that she was absolutely besotted with him. She no longer cared that he had once called her vermin, that he was responsible in part for the deaths of billions, that he’d been a thorn in the side of the Resistance for years. None of that mattered to her now. He was just a man with a metric fuck-ton of emotional baggage, a soft spot for his cat, and an intense desire to be a better person.

“I love you,” she whispered against his ear, holding him tightly. “I love you for everything you are and for everything you are trying so hard to be.”

His breath caught at the first mention of love, every fiber of his being freezing in place. Love? What did he know of love? Nothing. Nothing beyond simpering stories for children. He was not a creature designed for love; that had always been clear to him even as a child. He was neither lovable, nor worthy of love. He was a monster; a frothing, rabid dog that would readily strike out at any perceived threat, real or otherwise. He had no business, none at all, in claiming this woman’s heart.

“Rose, you can’t. I’m not… ” he struggled to find the words to tell her as much. That it was a mistake to love him.

“You’re not what?” she prompted him to try to finish one of those thoughts.

He took a deep, shuddering breath. “I am not… worthy of your regard. Of your love. I’m not.”

“That’s not up to you,” she pointed out placidly. “That’s my decision to make. No one else’s. Not even you.”

“But, Rose-“ he began, only to find her fingers pressed to his lips in a gentle command to be quiet.

“But nothing. I love you. It’s a fact. One you can’t change,” she insisted, her eyes somehow both stern and soft on his. “My only question is… do you love me too?”

The question struck him as utterly absurd and he couldn’t contain the somewhat manic laughter that bubbled up from his chest. “Do I love you too?” he repeated. “Rose, I am so utterly lost to you that I could not find my way back even if I wanted to! I adore you!”

Although her expression had faltered at his apparent mirth, it regained strength when he spoke. “A good start, but not really an answer to my question.”

He cleared his throat, realizing she was right. “Fair point. Yes. Yes, I do love you, Rose. With every scrap of my ill-conceived soul.”

She smiled, the sight of her joy making his heart feel squeezed in a warm grip. “Leave it to you to declare you love me and bad-mouth yourself in the same breath.”

“I am nothing if not consistent,” he responded with a bit of a laugh at his own expense. “What do we do now?”

“Now that we’ve admitted it to each other? I’m not sure. I know you aren’t staying in this bed any longer than Kalonia deems strictly necessary. I know I need to tidy up my space so you can join me there. I know Poe and Finn and everyone are going to have a mild freak out about this. And I know they are just going to have to learn to live with it.”

“Sounds like you ARE sure, actually,” he chuckled softly.

“About the immediate, yes. But anything past that? Not a clue. I can’t plan anything beyond the next time we have to move base or the next battle,” she explained.

“Ah. Yes, that would put a damper on any long-term plans,” he agreed.

“So, let’s just make a deal to not dwell on our far future until the near future is secure. Okay?” she suggested, her hands on either side of his face once more.

“Not usually in my nature, but yes. It can wait,” he nodded and leaned in closer until their foreheads touched, closing his eyes. Feeling this relaxed around another person was so new and so sweet… he didn’t think he would ever get used to it. Feeling her soft weight against him in such an intimate manner was utterly soothing.

The same seemed true for her as she settled against him, her head laying on his shoulder, one arm snaked around him with her hand on the small of his back, her other hand pressed flat over his heart. He placed one shaking hand over hers, holding it in place. His other hand slid to the back of her neck, tentatively caressing the soft skin and even softer hair. Her hair was longer now than it had been when he’d first met her, long enough that only a few strands had escaped the low bun at her nape. He wanted to run his fingers through her hair.

“May I?” he asked softly, tapping very lightly on one of the blunt pins holding the bun in place.

“Huh? Oh! Yeah, sure,” she allowed.

Carefully, he pulled out the pins and the soft, elastic band that helped form the style. Once loosened, her hair spread out behind her in soft, shiny waves. He slid his fingers through the strands gently, watching the play of the light on them.

“Beautiful… like black shimmersilk,” he commented softly.

Rose’s cheeks colored at his compliment and she ducked her head against his neck. The gesture made him smile at how his words could affect her.

“Here now, what’s this? You can praise me to the moons and back, but I can’t tell you how pretty your hair is?”

“Well… I mean… you can… but, I’m not… I’m not nearly as impressive as you are. I’m just a glorified maintenance tech with delusions of grandeur,” she insisted.

“Nonsense. You are exemplary in every way. You are intelligent and kind, far kinder than I deserve. Clever beyond measure, your plan for disabling our active tracking was pure genius. It was only bad luck that you didn’t get that far. Your loyalty is without comparison and that is something very rare in the galaxy. And you are…” he took a deep breath, meeting her eyes, nearly overwhelmed, “-heart-breakingly beautiful.”

Rose blinked, a ghost of a smile on her lips. “You think I’m beautiful?”

“I don’t think you’re beautiful. I know you are beautiful. It’s a fact,” he retorted, using her own words against her. “You must know how lovely you are.”

She shrugged. “No, not really. Paige was always the pretty one. Not me.”

“While I am certain Paige was pretty, there doesn’t have to be a ‘pretty one’ because you are pretty as well. No comparison.” He smoothed her hair back from her face. “I promise you, you are beautiful. Your skin is so smooth and soft, the rose that graces your cheeks is perfect. Your hair is so thick and glossy and… feels wonderful to run my fingers through. Those dark eyes of yours are completely beguiling. And this soft little mouth…” he ran two fingers along the seam of her lips. “ is utterly delicious. I need to have a taste again.” He bent his head, capturing her mouth with his, deepening the kiss slowly and trying to repeat what she’d done to him earlier.

The moan that slipped from her only encouraged him, coaxing him to take a deep breath and then quickly resume the kiss. She was so soft and sweet, far better than he’d ever even imagined. He wanted to breathe her in, soak in her warmth for the rest of his natural life. “Rose,” he panted her name softly in-between kisses. “Sweet stars, I could drown in you.”

Rose smiled at this declaration, sliding her fingers up into his hair. “Sweet talker.” She caressed through the bright strands, looking up at him with shining eyes. “Your hair is so soft. Did you know that redheads are considered lucky in Haysian lore?”

“Really?” he smiled. “Seems a bit of an odd superstition. Why redheads in particular?”

“There was a legend about a hero, a peerless warrior who was a protector of Hays Minor in ancient times from all threats. Some were human threats, such as marauding pirates, but the majority were supernatural; giant boars, dragons, giants, and witches. He was always portrayed as having hair like fire. I guess it started there,” she explained, still petting through his hair.

“Hmm, and what was this ginger hero’s name?” he asked, closing his eyes and just enjoying her touch.

“Arthr Pendragen[6].”

“Interesting. Anything else I should know about the history and culture of Hays Minor?” he asked, forgetting for a moment but then remembering that the planet had been all but destroyed by his own former masters. That sobered him.

“Not really. I’m sure I’ll think of things along the way. It’s been awhile since I’ve really been immersed in Haysian tradition. You know, for obvious reasons,” she shrugged.

“Ah… yes.” He bit his lip, considering. Simply saying he was sorry about her planet was so incredibly inadequate that it bordered on obscene. But what more could he do? He couldn’t bring the planet back to life. He couldn’t resurrect her parents. He couldn’t make it stop hurting her. And even though he had not been a part of the decision or the destruction, he still felt responsible.

“I know this is… a very meager attempt on my part. But, for what’s it’s worth, I am genuinely sorry for what happened to Hays Minor,” he said softly. “It doesn’t even begin to make things right. I’m not sure anything ever could, but-“

“Shh,” she shook her head, pressing her fingers against his mouth. “I know. Nothing can bring Hays Minor back. Nothing can bring my parents back; or my sister. This is war. People die. Planets get destroyed. I can’t blame you for everything the First Order has ever done. And the Resistance and the Rebellion before us aren’t innocent in all of this either. How many people died on the two Death Stars? On Starkiller Base? On the Supremacy?”

She sighed, “It’s war that I hate. Not you. Not any specific person.”

“That’s a very diplomatic way of looking at it,” he replied softly, touched by her assurance that she didn’t blame him for the deaths of her family.

“It’s the only way I stay sane. If I made a point to hate everyone involved… well, that’s too much hate for me to live with,” she explained.

“Hate was all I had to sustain me for a long time,” he nodded. “I know how draining it is. How hate eats at you. It’s hard to give it up though when it’s all you know,”

“You’ll learn, Armitage.” She pulled him closer, kissing him gently, less deeply than before but no less hungrily.

A low moan unfurled from his throat, every bit of him aching for more contact. “Rose…” he sighed her name when they parted, color blooming on his cheeks. “If all of our conversations are going to finish up with kisses, I may be compelled to open up more often.”

Rose laughed, smoothing his hair back from his brow. “I look forward to it. The conversations AND the kisses.”

“As do I, sweetling,” he nodded. He wanted to pull her into another kiss, but began to feel a little light-headed. He swayed slightly in her grasp and she tightened her grasp on his shoulders.

“You need to rest. You just had surgery,” she reminded him, carefully easing off of his lap and rearranging the blankets around him.

“Stay with me?” he asked quickly, taking her hand in his and squeezing. A part of him felt weak for asking, but the idea of watching her turn and leave the room filled him with anxiety.

“Of course. I’ll be right here,” she nodded, indicating the chair.

“No, not there… when I first woke up you were…” he licked his lips. “You were in bed with me. You were lying next to me.”

She smiled and looked down, a bit embarrassed. “Yeah, I was. I was worried about you and… even with all the tech you’re hooked up to; I wanted to make sure you were going to wake up.”

“I’d say I’m out of danger for now, but I would still like to have you close,” he said, green eyes beseeching her.

“Scootch over then.”

He shifted over to one side, leaving enough room for her to curl up beside him. She laid down, her head pillowed on his shoulder, one leg resting over his, and one hand settled over his heart. “This okay?”

“Perfect,” he breathed, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head.


	8. Chapter 8

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table.  
You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss.  
_-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

Together, they slept through the night; something neither of them had been able to do for some time. Hux in particular had existed on about three or four hours of sleep a night. As such, the sensation of actually being well-rested when he woke was something new and wonderful. He sighed softly, his hand lazily tracing up and down Rose’s back before he was properly conscious. She made a soft sound of contentment, curling against him more tightly, burying her face against his neck.

“Rose…” he whispered her name, his voice thick with sleep even as he opened his eyes the barest bit.

“Shh,” she mumbled, her breath warm on his skin. “Still sleeping.”

He chuckled softly, “Somehow, I don’t believe you.”

“Shush.”

“You are not still sleeping if you are talking to me, Rose.”

“Are you always this talkative first thing in the morning?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never had someone to talk to first thing in the morning.”

She groaned softly, pressing soft kisses to his neck and along his shoulder. “If you’re going to insist on talking to me, I’m going to busy myself with more pleasurable activities.”

He gave a soft sigh of pleasure. “Is that supposed to dissuade me somehow?”

“Nope,” was her sole reply before returning to moving her lips over his skin. She ran her lips over his collarbone, enjoying how it made him gasp softly.

“Sweet stars, that feels good,” he whispered in a low voice. “Oh, how is it a few kisses from your lips is enough to undo me?”

“Keep talking or I’ll stop,” she whispered against his ear before licking a long, hot line along his jugular.

“Ahh… Rose… what is it you want me to say?” he asked in between deep breaths.

“Tell me what you want to do to me once you’re out of the medbay,” she suggested.

“Oh, sweetling…” he panted softly as she gently bit the skin over his collarbone. “If you keep doing this, I’m not certain how long I will be coherent for.”

“Give it your best shot,” she said, soothing the nip with her tongue.

“I would lay you down on your bed. Let my hands wander over your skin,” he whispered, voice catching as her mouth drifted over the part of his chest left bare by the shirt he wore, the vee just deep enough to allow her to kiss right over the center of his sternum.

“I would undress you, run my mouth over your flesh. Nuzzle between your breasts and learn how every inch of you tastes. I would take one of your nipples into my mouth and suck on it until you cried out,” he said in a hurried rush, trying to get his thoughts out before he lost all control over his tongue.

She moaned softly against his neck. She slid one hand over his body, the thin material of his clothes letting her feel how heated his skin was.

Her hand moved past the waistband of his pants, until she was palming the hard length of him through the cloth. He gasped, starting to shake, eyes screwed shut as he fought to control himself.

“Rose..!” he cried out, trying to stifle himself, lest someone come to check on them.

“Wow. You’re… big,” she moaned.

He opened his eyes, searching her face for any trace of mockery. When he found none, he let out the breath he’d been holding.

“Am I? I wouldn’t know.”

“Yeah. You’re tall, so I was expecting you to be long. But, you’re thick too. That’s a surprise. A good one,” she trailed her fingers along his cock.

“I am… glad I… pass,” he panted, closing his eyes once more and letting his head fall back onto the pillow.

“You’re… really hard too. Just from me kissing you and touching you? I didn’t even do that much,” she said in wonderment.

“I told you before. You are incredibly seductive to me. The only thing that kept me from being aroused yesterday was the lingering anesthetic,” he explained.

“May I touch you? Fully?” she asked.

He nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

She leaned in, catching his mouth in a hungry kiss, distracting him from what her hand was doing. Nimble fingers slid under the waistband, a soft trail of hair led her down to his cock. She moaned as she palmed at his erection. She broke off the kiss.

“Oh fuck… you’re perfect,” she managed in a shaky voice.

He gave a short bark of laughter before his breath was stolen once more by her questing fingers, this time curling around the base of him.

“Rose… stars, I want you. I want to be inside of you,” he groaned. “I want to know the slick heat of you, feel how you would squeeze around me. I want to drive myself into you… deeper… and deeper. I want to hear you cry out my name. I want to make you cum again and again and again. And then, only once you are fully sated, I want to finish inside you.”

Rose gasped. At first, he worried that he had been too forward in his desires. But her smile and the red flush across her face told him otherwise. She stroked him up and down, stopping only for a split second to withdraw her hand and spit into her palm. It was not the best substitute for actual lube or lotion, but it would keep her from accidentally hurting him.

“Cum for me, Armitage. I want you to cum for me,” she whispered against his ear, her own voice tinged with a quiet sob of need.

That was all the command he needed, arching his back and thrusting his hips up, balls drawing up tight. The pressure gathered tightly at the base of his spine, bursting forward in a rush of pleasure. He clapped one hand over his mouth to keep from yelling out her name as he spilled against her stroking hand. A pink flush spread through him, coloring his porcelain pale skin.

Watching him in such an intimate moment of pleasure was immeasurably moving, seeing him undone and shaking, clinging to her tightly. Her hand stilling on his cock, she used her other to soothe him, smoothing his hair back from his sweaty forehead. Gods, he was beautiful like this; ivory and fire and jade.

“Rose,” he ground out her name once he was able to take his hand from his mouth.

She pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek. “I’m here. I’ve got you,” she assured him.

It took several minutes for his trembling to cease entirely, his body still wholly unused to the process of release. Once he was calm once more, he cleared his throat and sat up. “I… you… we need to find a cloth or something to clean your hand with. I know that’s not the most comfortable of sensations…”

“Armitage, it’s fine. I’ll wash my hands in the sink over there and bring over a damp rag to clean you with,” she smiled, pressing another kiss to his cheek as she carefully withdrew her hand. She stood, stretching her back and shoulders before going to the small in-room sink to wash her hands.

“You spoke differently… while I was touching you and a bit before that. Like, your accent was different,” she commented, wetting a soft cloth and wringing it out.

“Ah… I didn’t realize,” he looked down, apparently embarrassed. “Well… I didn’t always have an Imperial accent. I learned it when I entered school.”

“What’s your natural accent then?” she asked, handing over the rag.

“I was born on Arkanis. The native people there have a sort of lilting accent. It was considered a commoner’s way of speaking among the Imperials. My mother… I assume… spoke with an Arkanisian accent. I picked it up from her,” he explained, using the rag to wipe himself off, relieved to find that he had not stained the pants he wore.

“Arkanis? Oh, I’ve heard of Arkanis. It rains a lot there, right? But it’s very green and pretty. Lots of farms and estates and things,” she smiled, resuming her position on the bed with him. “Can you speak like that if you tried to?”

“Aye, though oi down’t ken whui ye’re wantin’ te hare meh talk loike ah paysunt, noyw,[7]” he said, the accent much clearer now. It had a rambling cadence, full of ups and downs, far more dynamic than the straight-laced Imperial accent.

She grinned immediately. “Wow. That’s kind of fun to listen to. How come you never talk like that on your own?”

He sighed softly, reverting back to his Imperial accent, “You call it my natural accent; but the truth is that I’ve spoken with my Imperial accent for far longer than I ever spoke with my Arkanisian one. I have to think about it, unless I'm apparently in the throes of pleasure. I didn’t even know I did that.”

“Well, I think it sounds nice. Wish the Haysian accent was as pretty,” she said, a bit enviously.

“I think your accent is perfect. Just like you,” he insisted, cupping her face with one hand, prompting her to meet his eyes. “You are perfect, Rose. Beautiful, brilliant, kind, determined… you are everything.”

She bit her lip, her eyes looking wet and glossy all of a sudden.

She gulped in a deep breath before speaking, “Thank you. I know you mean it.”

“But you don’t believe me?” Hux frowned, stroking her hair back from her face, the messy strands still soft and thick against his fingers.

“No, I do. I do believe you. It’s just… really nice to hear it. I know it sounds like I’m fishing for compliments… but it feels really good to hear it,” she smiled up at him, eyes misty though she had successfully fought back full tears. “Do you believe me when I tell you that you’re handsome?”

“I believe that you think me handsome,” he replied, deflecting the question. Truth be told, he thought himself just this side of ugly. He was too skinny, too pale, too… orange [8].

“Hush, you are very handsome, Armitage,” she frowned, sitting up to look at him squarely.

“You are biased,” he pointed out.

“I thought you were handsome even when I only knew you as General Hux of the First Order,” she shook her head.

That gave him pause. She had most certainly not felt any iota of affection for him at their first meeting on the _Supremacy_. Although he had noticed then that she was pretty; anger had prevented him from thinking anything past that. The idea that she would have found his smirking face handsome in the least had never even occurred to him.

He likely hadn’t been at his best that day; over-exhausted, hopped up on caf and stims, still sporting a sore lip and bitten tongue, and grasping at straws to find some good news to report to Snoke. Rose’s bite to his finger had not helped matters. He’d felt humiliated and in turn had become vindictive, ordering their execution instead of following protocol and having them questioned.

“How could you have possibly found me attractive then? I was being purposefully vile,” he shook his head.

“Oh, I thought you were good-looking before that. First time I ever saw you was on those stupid First Order propaganda holos. There’s a reason you were the poster boy for the First Order. You’re good-looking and you were a model officer,” she pointed out.

“Well… I mean… I’m not ugly, per se. I just think I’m… not very manly?” It came out as a question as he tried to put his opinions of himself into words. “I’m thin and pasty… I look like I’ve been starved, no matter what I eat. I have next to no muscle mass. I have no chest hair or hair on my arms or legs. Everything on me is just so… gangly and stretched out. My hair is… too ginger. Everything about my appearance is better suited to a girl than to a man.”

“I don’t think you are girlish at all,” she shook her head. “Not everyone likes big, muscle bound lunks with more biceps than brains. And no one wants to spend much time with them.”

“You were with Finn at one point,” he said softly, making sure to not sound accusatory. “He’s a handsome man.”

“He’s handsome and has muscle to him, yes… but he’s exhausting. I don’t want to be his mother as well as his lover. Besides, he may not know it yet, but he’s totally in love with Poe,” she shrugged. “That’s besides the point; just because he’s handsome doesn’t mean you aren’t. I happen to be more attracted to tall, slender men… always have been.”

“Really?” he asked, green eyes curious now.

“Yeah. And I happen to like your coloring too. You know that, I told you yesterday,” she reminded him, although she did remember that he had also told her she was beautiful the day before as well.

“Ah, yes… you did. Some parts of yesterday feel like a dream. I blame my concussion and the anesthesia,” he nodded.

“You are gorgeous, Armitage,” she said, touching his cheek gently. “I will keep telling you so until you believe it for yourself. I’ll probably still tell you so afterwards too.”

“And I shall enjoy it every time,” he managed a somewhat sheepish smile.

“Good,” she nodded, leaning in to kiss him gently. “I’ve got to go set my quarters to rights and I promised Poe I’d check things on his X-Wing… I’m sure General Organa will want to touch base with you. Kalonia probably wants to check in on you too. I’ll be back around lunch, okay?”

“But we… I didn’t get a chance to…” he started, a fresh crimson blush blooming on his cheeks.

“Love, it’s fine. I didn’t give you a hand-job so that you would have to return the favor. If you feel you must, you can make it up to me later, okay?” she suggested as she slid off the bed and ran her fingers haphazardly through her hair.

His blush deepened. She’d never called him ‘love’ before, but the ease with which she used the pet name made his heart flip in his chest. He nodded. “Very well. I shall endeavor to be patient.”

“Get some more rest, dear,” she said, leaning down over him to give him one more kiss. One last gesture to smooth his hair back and she scampered from the room.


	9. Chapter 9

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table.  
You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss.  
_-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

Some hours later, Hux woke when he heard a soft rap on the doorframe. He blinked up at the silhouette in the doorway. Not Rose. It was someone about her height, but wearing some sort of gown and cloak.

“General Hux. Might I come in, please?” A woman’s voice broke through his momentary confusion.

He sat up quickly, grimacing when the movement pulled on his healing skin. Still he was not going to have a conversation with General Leia Organa while lying back in bed like a damn invalid. He couldn’t stand, but he sat up straight, shoulders squared back and head up. “Yes, of course, General Organa. Lieutenant General Tico told me that you might want to see me.”

The leader of the Resistance walked in, also keeping her back straight, although her petite stature meant that she was only about eye-level with him even though she was standing and he was sitting. Her eyes were fixed on him appraisingly, silently but gently judging him, he thought. Being observed in a critical manner was nothing new to him, but for some reason this did not set him as on edge as usual.

“Young,” she finally pronounced him. “Or, younger than I was expecting, at least.”

He met her gaze challengingly. Although he was the youngest general in the history of the First Order, he was adamant that he got there through his own hard work and intelligence. “I have been a general since I was twenty-five, General Organa. I assure you, I was and am still quite capable of performing to the standards of my rank.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that,” she said with a shake of her head. “How are you feeling? Kalonia tells me you are lucky to be alive,” she asked, brown eyes oddly gentle on him.

The question itself made no sense to him for a moment. Why would she care how he was feeling? Then he remembered that for most people, this was a legitimate question to begin a conversation with.

“Healing well; thanks to your Doctor Kalonia and Lieutenant General Tico,” he nodded. “And how are you?” he threw in as an afterthought.

“Old, mostly. But I’m not here to discuss my problems,” she said with a bit of a smile, apparently amused by his attempt at small talk.

“If I might beg your pardon, General; what are you here to discuss?” he asked.

“You’re very to the point,” she commented, though her tone told him that she was not disparaging him for it, merely noting it aloud. “First, I wanted to thank you for providing us with incredibly valuable intel over the last year.”

“You need not thank me, General. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement,” he shook his head.

“Nevertheless, your help is much appreciated,” she insisted. “I doubt you were expecting an assassination attempt when you first agreed to this.”

“Well, no,” he admitted. “But, do not mistake me. I was not spying for you out of the goodness of my heart. I do not believe in the abilities of the New Republic. I may no longer agree with the First Order’s mandate, but I am not a Resistance fighter either.”

“Oh, I figured as much. But whether you continue to help us or not, you do have a safe place to live among us. All of my commanders have been informed of your presence and your importance. Between them and myself, no one in the Resistance should try to harm you. Plus, no one wants to cross Rose. She may be little but she is a fierce one [9],” Leia said with a smile.

“That, she most certainly is,” he nodded, looking down at his hands in an attempt to hide his own fond smile.

“I also would like to apologize to you,” she said, taking a seat in the chair, as though this part was tiring.

“Apologize to me, General? Whatever for?”

“On behalf of my son,” she replied. “I’m sure you’re aware that Kylo Ren used to be my son, Ben Solo.”

“Yes. I was aware of it from the beginning, although I suspect he loathed me for knowing it.”

“You may be right about that. And I am aware that my son is… somewhat volatile in his temper, something Snoke fostered in him. You worked closely with him and from what Lieutenant Mitaka told me, you insisted on dealing with him yourself rather than sending a subordinate.”

“I did. I did not want to risk him killing my officers. I was mostly certain that Snoke would not have liked it if he killed me, however. I was safe from deadly attacks at the very least.”

“And over the last year? I have trouble feeling many things from him, but I have felt his anger rising.”

“Over the last year… he seemed to be satisfied with merely demoting me and letting Allegiant General Pryde keep me under his boot,” Hux huffed, his hatred for both Pryde and Kylo Ren clear in his voice.

“Be that as it may; I am aware that my son took his temper out on you probably more than anyone else. And for that, I am very sorry,” Leia shook her head. “It doesn’t make it better. I know that. Nothing will. I just wanted to express my remorse to you.”

To say he was startled by this odd apology was an understatement. He was actually silent for a few minutes, contemplating how to respond. “It’s not necessary, but thank you. ,” he finally decided on. “It’s not your fault in the least, but I do understand feeling responsible for a family member’s acts.”

“I thought you might. I never met Brendol Hux, but I am familiar enough with his methods from when the Imperial Empire still thrived. He was a cruel man even then,” she said as gently as possible.

Hux flinched slightly at the sound of his father’s name. “He didn’t improve with age, I assure you.”

“Men like him rarely do. Luckily, you are young enough to cast off his mantle of cruelty,” she said. “I imagine the old guard Imperials were not pleased by that,” she said, leaning forward on her cane with a conspiratory smile.

Hux couldn’t help but smile slightly in return, the twinkle in her eyes inviting a certain amount of confidence. “No. No, they were not. Old fools, the lot of them.”

“You don’t know how right you are,” she shook her head. “Well, we’re glad you’re here with us and not there surrounded by people who are looking for any excuse to shoot you. I was very saddened when we received the thankfully incorrect news that you’d been killed.”

“You were?” Hux frowned.

“Yes. I might not have known you in any personal way, but I know you are a brilliant, young man. Would have been a great pity to have lost you so soon,” she nodded.

He sighed slightly. “Perhaps. Although I’m afraid I will not be as useful to you now.”

Leia laughed in an indulgent tone. “My dear boy, I didn’t mean it would have been a pity for the Resistance to lose you. I meant it would be a pity in general. You have a lot to offer the galaxy.”

“You really think that, General?” he asked, truly confused as to why the woman that had lost so much to the First Order and the Empire that gave birth to it would care at all about what became of him.

“I know it. Even if I hadn’t come to that conclusion on my own, seeing how Rose cares for you would certainly convince me. She’s been hurt before, fairly recently at that… that she is willing to open her heart up to you speaks volumes about you. Rose is very kind, but she is no fool,” Leia explained.

“Of course, she is far from being a fool. Rose has no equal when it comes to her capacity for kindness.,” he was quick to agree. He almost blurted out that he loved Rose, but restrained himself. He didn’t need to go splashing that truth around.

Leia smiled at that, pleased that he so readily admitted it to her. “You are a very lucky man.”

“That I am, General,” he nodded.

“Well, I’ve said my piece,” she said, sitting back in her seat. “Do you have any questions for me, General?”

“Mmm, I’m not really a general anymore, am I?” he pointed out.

“True, but you are still deserving of the respect afforded someone of that rank. You haven’t been court martialed or dishonorably discharged. As far as the First Order knows, you’re just dead,” she nodded.

“Ah, I was wondering if my not-so-certain death had been questioned,” he nodded.

“From what we can hear of the First Order chatter, they are still saying that you’ve been killed. No one’s really saying why except the higher ups. Many of them actually seem to be questioning Pryde’s rights as far as executing you without due process or even any real proof of treason. Seems this one action of his has startled the rest. Mitaka has been noticed missing and it’s assumed that he simply jumped ship after disposing of your body in such an unfeeling way,” Leia explained.

“It’s a good job I woke up before he could toss me out into space. That would have been undignified indeed.”

“That’s what we thought as well. We were actually trying to pinpoint the _Steadfast’s_ position so we could try to retrieve your body and tend to a burial for you. I’m glad that was unnecessary.”

“You would have buried me?” he asked, incredulous.

“Yes. We were partially responsible for your apparent death. And being left to drift frozen in space is not a fate anyone should have,” Leia said.

“Hmm, that’s kind. A bit morbid, but kind,” he said, strangely pleased that they even cared. He took a deep breath, licking his lips. “After Crait, your numbers were severely hampered. Have you been able to rebuild? Do you have the men, the ships, the weapons you need to fight the Sith Eternal?”

“No, no, and no,” she sighed, her worry about this very thing clearly written on her tired face. “Over the past year we’ve barely been able to regain the sort of numbers and equipment we had on D’qar.”

“That’s not good,” Hux shook his head. “What resources do you have? Liquid assets? Credits? Any disposable income?”

“Not as much as you probably think we do. Are you offering your services in some capacity, General?” Leia asked, tilting her head at him curiously.

“I’m not a part of your cause. But Rose is very important to me. And the Sith Eternal CANNOT be permitted to succeed,” he decided. “I have contacts with many weapons manufacturers and suppliers. They don’t need to know that what I order from them ISN’T going to the First Order.”

Leia looked at him speculatively. “And you can do that without alerting the First Order?”

“They won’t notice a thing. I could supply the entire Stormtrooper corps twice over before anyone would notice the deficit in our coffers. And I can have the suppliers drop everything off on a different planet, so even they won’t know where we are. That way they cannot rat us out even if the First Order does catch on,” he shook his head, eyes becoming bright, hands more animated. This was where he was in his element; making plans, thinking out loud without reservation, letting his brain just go with ideas and possibilities.

Leia’s eyes lit up watching him. All of the holos she’d seen of him had made him seem very reserved, even cold; but this young man was so bright and quick-witted, she could practically see the gears turning in his head. His datapad appeared in his hand almost by magic as he planned this endeavor out, picking and choosing which suppliers would be most likely to work with him sight unseen, sending inquiries that sounded incredibly official.

“I can get you equipment; weapons, ships, even things like rations and uniforms. I cannot provide warm bodies though. Surely there is some way you can use your influence in the core worlds to gain more followers to your cause?” he asked, knowing supplies were only half of this battle.

“It’s possible. The Resistance’s stories still carry some weight among the downtrodden. Although it’s stronger in the Outer Rims, where the New Republic has all but forgotten about them. But we need a way to bring those people here. Lots of them don’t have ships of their own or they would have left their planets already.”

“Troop carriers first, then ones with room for soldiers and families. Anyone who needs evacuation. And I know another planet in particular that will have lots of people eager to get off.”

“Oh? Which planet is that?”

“Karlinus,” he said, bringing up the location and the stats of the planet. “It’s a slave planet, for all intents and purposes. The First Order was using it as a halfway point to collect salvage from the Supremacy. Once they were done, they moved on to bigger fish. There’s a small military presence there, but nothing you and your forces can’t handle. The people there will be more than happy to throw off their yoke.”

“And… not far from us,” Leia nodded, looking at the projection from his datapad. “That could work really well. I can send scouts out now to gauge the people’s situation, bring them food and medical supplies, help them in any way we can.”

“That will give me time to put together a small battalion of transports to move people safely off-planet. If your scouts take Mitaka with them, he can report back to me on how well-tended the planet is by the First Order. And he knows codes and passwords should your scouts get into a pinch,” Hux suggested.

“Sounds like a plan. You’re very good at this, General,” Leia smiled.

“I’m not a General,” he insisted once again.

“No? Funny. You’re acting like one,” Leia pointed out. “If rank is so important to you, I see no reason why it shouldn’t change alliances along with you. You’re far too gifted for me to insist you start out as a lowly private. Besides, I’d prefer to have you report directly to me rather than to Poe or Finn.”

Hux blinked at her, speechless for a few precious seconds. “You’re serious?” he finally asked.

“Of course I am. We need smart leaders just as much as we need more soldiers. Poe, for all of his charisma, is not particularly good at strategizing on the fly. And Finn has ideas but often needs another mind to help complete them,” Leia explained. “So… are you interested?”

“Well… yes,” he responded. “I would be honored.”

“Excellent. You’re hereby promoted to General of the Resistance. Welcome aboard.”


	10. Chapter 10

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table.  
You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss.  
_-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

Things happened very quickly after that proclamation.

Kalonia pronounced him well enough to leave the medbay and subsequently unhooked him from the various monitors and the IV drip he’d been on. Leia sent word to her teams that Hux had joined their cause and was to be afforded the protocols of any other general. Respect would have to be earned by Hux from the others; but in the meantime, if they respected her then they would also respect her wishes. Poe had stopped by with some supplies for him, including a Resistance jacket with the correct insignia on it. The pilot had been a bit awkward, but surprisingly good-natured. “Hugs” was swiftly becoming a weird sort of friendly nickname.

Hux soon found himself standing in the middle of the Ajan Kloss base, freshly showered, arms full of supplies, not knowing precisely where he should go. Luckily for him, Rose emerged from the nearest hangar and immediately sprinted over to him.

“You joined us!” she exclaimed, barely remembering to let him put the supplies down before launching herself into his arms. She kissed him in her infectious enthusiasm and excitement . “So much for not caring if we win!”

“Yes, well… I had to save face in front of Finn,” he offered, feeling his cheeks heat, aware of others suddenly watching them. Swallowing tightly, he set her back on her feet, holding her at arm’s length.

Rose frowned, confused by this apparently cold move until she noticed the pink across his face. Wordlessly, she understood that public displays of affection were uncomfortable for him. She smiled at him, reaching up to briefly touch his cheek. “Sorry. I’m just excited for you,” she explained.

He caught her hand in his, pressing a kiss to her knuckles in apology. “I know. I just… I’m not used to not having to keep practically everything I do a secret.”

“Come on, let’s get you settled in my… our… quarters,” she offered, bending to pick up one of the boxes. “Millicent is already there, although I haven’t let her out of her carrier yet. I didn’t want her to get scared and run away from me in search of you. I did feed her though.”

“Thank you, sweetling. I was wondering where she’d gotten to,” he nodded picking up the other box and following her.

Rose’s quarters were near the hangar bay, close to the ships she routinely worked on and kept in flying form. There was ample room for the two of them and a private refresher. She clearly had cleaned it very recently, the scent of industrial cleansers still evident in the air. There were two beds, but Rose had pushed them together to make one, larger bed. Two sets of shelves and drawers, one already full with her belongings and projects. The other was empty and clean, waiting for his belongings to claim their place. There was also a workbench with various projects lined up neatly and an empty desk, presumably for him.

As soon as he was close, Millicent started meowing pitifully in her carrier, clawing at the latch. Hux chuckled softly and set the box down, kneeling to open the crate. “All right, all right. Come on out, silly girl.”

The ginger cat streaked out of the crate and immediately started rubbing against Hux’s legs, meowing incessantly, as though telling him all about her ordeal. Indulgently, he stroked her from head to fluffy tail, inciting a curiously adorable sound that was a cross between a meow and a purr. He gathered her into his arms and stood, beckoning Rose closer. “Rose, this is Millie. Millie, this is Rose,” he said, introducing them as though they were both self-aware creatures.

Millie put her ears back cautiously, leaning forward, little nose twitching. Rose reached out, fingers outstretched, letting Millie sniff at her fingers. This gesture apparently met with feline approval; Millie flicked a little pink tongue out to lick the tip of Rose’s finger. Rose gave a soft cry of delight and carefully scratched Millie under her chin. “Aww, she’s so cute! I’ve never seen a real cat before. Tookas and Lothcats, sure… but a true cat?” she smiled as Millie allowed Rose to stroke her.

“Millicent is very special. My father was obsessed with genetics and breeding. He had a cattery of sorts on Arkanis. He bred very expensive cats that the rich liked to own as status symbols. Even when we fled Arkanis, he made a point to bring his prized breeders with us. He never let me interact with them much, but every so often I was permitted to help care for them. Usually that meant I was cleaning up after them or feeding them. But there was one litter… the mother got sick after giving birth and she died. One by one, her kittens followed, except for Millie. I told my father she’d died too. He didn’t much care since she’d been the smallest kitten, the runt. But I was determined to help her survive.”

He took a deep breath, smiling softly as he put Millie on the bed, only for her to sit up on her back legs, her front paws on his hip, meowing for more petting. He sat next to her and obliged, stroking her gently. “She was tiny; fit in the palm of one hand. Her eyes weren’t even open yet. I bottle-fed her every four hours for weeks. I had to hide her from everyone; my father, my superiors, my fellow officers, even the Stormtroopers. When I was promoted to general, I was permitted a pet allowance; the only one Snoke ever gave.”

“She’s beautiful,” Rose smiled, sitting on the other side of Millie, joining him in petting her, much to the cat’s utter delight. “And she clearly loves you a lot.”

“Yes, well… the feeling is mutual,” he smiled. “She’s been the only bright spot in my life for a long time. Until you.”

“Until me,” she agreed, leaning over Millie to gently kiss him.

Millie leapt down to explore her new surroundings, allowing Hux and Rose to slide closer to each other. They lost no time in doing so without breaking their kiss. Hux lifted his hands, brushing his knuckles along the sides of her face and then turning his hands around to let his fingertips caress her soft skin. He cupped her face in his hands, moaning softly as she deepened the kiss, twining her tongue sweetly with his. Small, nimble hands were already pushing his new jacket off and tugging at the plain black shirt he wore underneath it.

“Will anyone come looking for us?” he asked breathlessly when Rose pulled away to stand, shutting and locking the door.

“Nope. And even if they do, I ain’t answering it,” she declared, unbuttoning her shirt and kicking off her boots at the same time, growling at herself when she couldn’t get undressed fast enough. Once she was only in her underwear and breast-band, she returned to him, diving right into another soul-searing kiss.

He groaned low in his chest, following her lead after a bit of a pause, pulling off his shirt. The second her hands slid over his back, he gasped at the shivery sensation. Rose stopped, however, tracing a long, raised line across his back. He swallowed hard knowing exactly what she’d found.

“What-?” she began to ask, although he knew she already knew the answer.

“Old scars,” he supplied, leaning forward to rest his head on her shoulder, the position arching his back against her touch. Might as well let her see and feel; they weren’t ever going to go away, after all.

“From… your father?” she whispered.

“Yes,” Hux nodded tautly.

“He used a whip on you? These feel like whip marks.” He heard the quiver in her voice. He hated for her to know what he had gone through. She knew enough the evils of men, he did not want to add more to that list. It was terrible; he wanted to keep everything he could from her but her very presence coaxed the truth from him. Like whatever he told her would leave him forever.

“No. A belt. The buckle was metal.”

He gasped once more as her fingers traced along the lines more deliberately this time. The skin was raised in sharp relief to the otherwise smooth skin. Yet, they were old and the scar tissue had softened.

Keeping one hand down on those old wounds, she slid the other up into his hair, gently petting the back of his head. She turned her head, pressing a lingering kiss to his temple. “I wish I could kiss away these scars from your skin,” she whispered to him, starting to rock side to side. “I love you, Armitage. I love everything about you… even these.”

He gave a soft sob, tears slipping unbidden from his eyes, compelling him to keep his face hidden against her shoulder. His arms encircled her waist, holding her close. “Forgive me,” he hissed, his words staggered by the weeping. “I’m ruining this… I ruin everything.”

“There’s nothing to forgive, love,” she assured him. “You aren’t ruining anything. This is important. It’s important for you to heal.”

“Those scars are old. They aren’t going to heal any more than they already have,” he shook his head without lifting it.

“I don’t mean the physical scars, sweetheart. I mean the wounds on your heart, your soul… even your mind.” She kissed his temple once more, hugging him close. “You hated your father in adulthood, but as a child? An abused child doesn’t stop loving their parents, they stop loving themselves.”

He shuddered in her arms, curling even more into himself if such a thing were possible. “I spent… much of my childhood trying to make him proud of me. But no matter what I did, it was never enough. I was never enough. I was… always a disappointment.” he shook his head, drawing in a deep, shaking breath. “It was only when I was a teenager that I realized I was smarter than he was, and then I began to hate him. The beatings had stopped by then, but he still never missed a chance to belittle me, whether in public or in private. That continued until the day he died.”

“You said before that you had him killed? How did you do it?” she asked.

“Poison. A beetle from Phasma’s homeworld with a lethal bite. He didn’t even know he’d been bitten. They never figured out what had caused him to slowly dissolve from the inside out,” he muttered darkly, still rather pleased with the gruesome nature of his father’s murder.

“Fucker deserved it. Can’t say I normally approve of such things, but… in this case… I’m glad. If he wasn’t already dead, I’d be gearing up to find him and kill him myself,” Rose said, her voice low and serious.

“I’d normally admonish you for language, but in this instance… I’ll allow it,” he said with a slight laugh. Something about this small outburst calmed him. The fact that Rose didn’t disparage him for killing his father was gratifying, to be sure. He relaxed against her, nuzzling against her neck, now finding the stroke of her hands on his back to be arousing rather than triggering. “Rose… my sweet Rose… how do you so quickly take me from sorrow to desire?”

“Um, just lucky, I guess?” she laughed softly, glad to hear he was feeling clear again. She leaned closer, pressing her lips to his pale shoulder, slowly mouthing her way up along his neck, the motion coaxing him to straighten and lean his head to one side.

The feel of kisses on his neck made him tremble, skin burning wherever her lips touched. His pulse jumped under this tender assault and he groaned softly. “Sweet stars, Rose…”

“Mmm, I like that little phrase…” Rose smiled against his skin, nipping along his collarbone, pleased when his breath caught in his throat. “It’s very… you.”

“Is it? I-“ he began, only to be cut off by her pushing him onto his back, straddling his thighs.

She leaned over him, kissing him hard, a small growl in her throat. She sat back up, hands leaning on his chest for leverage, looking down at him. He was so good-looking, it actually made things inside her twist needily. His skin was pale as snow, dotted here and there with tiny freckles, small nipples as pink as his cheeks. She leaned down again, kissing down his chest, this time unhampered by a shirt in the way. He was thin, yes, but there was a trim tone to him. Truth be told, she found him rather elegant, with long limbs and lithe muscle to him. She drifted to the side, flicking her tongue against one tight nipple, earning a sharp gasp from him.

“Sweet stars, what-?” he started, looking down at her in surprise. “I had no idea that would… feel good for a man, too.”

She smiled up at him, shifting up to kiss him gently. “Lay back and let me do this, okay?”

“Let you… do what?” he asked, though he did lay his head back down on the pillow.

“Use my mouth on you,” she replied matter-of-factly.

He whispered something she couldn’t quite make out under his breath, though his tone was one of clear encouragement. She slid back down, returning to pay gentle attention to one nipple, fingers toying very carefully with the other. Against her stomach, she could feel his cock through his pants, hard as a length of iron pipe. She would have to make this quick so he wouldn’t feel bad if he finished a bit early.

“Rose,” he panted her name, each exhalation of breath tinged with a moan or a soft cry of pleasure.

Gods, his voice was amazing. That little lilt was back, rolling the first letter of her name just enough for it to be different from how he normally said it. She shimmied a bit further down, kissing along his flat belly, paying special attention to that hip divot that she had always found unbearably sexy. If he was ticklish at all, he gave no indication of it. The barest hint of ginger hair began above the waist of his pants, fiery against the paleness of his skin.

Although her fingers trembled, she was able to deftly release the fastening of his pants and push the black underwear he wore down. His cock, true to what she had only felt before, was fully hard, red-skinned and throbbing against her hand. He made a slightly strangled sound, apparently struggling to contain himself. Rose had to take a moment to contend with his size. She had wrapped her hand around him that morning, but that still hadn’t prepared her for seeing how large he was up close and personal.

He wasn’t holo-porn huge, thank her lucky stars but he was certainly the largest she’d ever dealt with, long and surprisingly thick. She licked her lips, choosing to ease into this, even if it might make hanging on more difficult for him.

To start, she pressed soft, open-mouthed kisses along the underside, working from root to tip, flicking her tongue out over the very top to lap up the clear precum that had gathered there. It tasted salty and bitter; she could still smell the soap he’d used before being released from the medbay.

He whimpered softly, one hand clawing at the blankets beneath him, the other shakily threading through her hair. He didn’t push her down in any attempt to get her to hurry up, he just cupped the back of her head gently. “Rose…” he drew out her name in a pleading moan.

Having some pity, she closed her lips around the head of his cock, sucking gently. A low, shaking groan rewarded her efforts, another entreaty of her name. Slowly and carefully, she worked more and more of his length into her mouth. She’d never tried to deep throat anyone before and she wasn’t sure now was the best time to try, but she wanted to envelop as much of him as possible. Once she had him just short of hitting the back of her throat, she pulled back slowly, letting her lips slide wetly along his shaft. She swirled her tongue around the tip as she reached the top, then slid back down. She found a slow, steady rhythm, bobbing her head up and down.

“Fuck, Rose!” he cried out, his hips shook as he struggled to keep them still.. “Rose… close! Fuck, I’m close!” he warned her.

She moaned in response to both his words and the desperate sound of his voice. Bobbing her head more quickly now, she sucked a bit harder, wrapping her hand around the base of him, both to hold him steady and so she would feel that split second buzz before he spilled.

It was a bit odd how much she was enjoying this. She’d never really liked giving head before, it had just been a way to satisfy a man when she didn’t want to spread her legs to him. She’d always been rather detached from the action before, thinking about things other than the cock in her mouth and just waiting for it to be done with. But now, she actually enjoyed the feel of Hux in her mouth, heavy against her tongue. Even the taste of him was kind of nice now that she’d gotten used to that slight bitterness.

He was quickly approaching the point of no return, she could feel his movements becoming more erratic, his hand now gripping her hair, although he was still careful not to pull. He gave a sharp cry, hips curling up against her as he toppled over the edge.

His hot seed hit her tongue, making her moan softly as she drank him down. She held his hips in place to keep him from accidentally thrusting up too hard. Once he began to calm, although panting hard, his body all but sank into the bed. Only then did she slide her mouth off of him, wiping a few drops of escaped seed from her chin.

“Are you okay?” she asked, rolling to the side and crawling up next to him. She tugged on his shoulders, coaxing him to lie on his side facing her so she could hold him.

“Yes… oh, yes…” he nodded, pulling her closer in turn, pressing soft kisses against her throat. “Sweet stars, that was amazing! I never thought anything could feel so good.”

She smiled, pleased that he had enjoyed it so much. “Good. It’s not usually my go-to method, but I kind of liked it with you.”

“Really?” he laughed softly, sounding almost giddy.

“Really. That was good.” she nodded.

“I am glad you were able to find some pleasure in it,” he sighed in contentment, one of his hands drifting up and down her back. “Just give me a moment to catch my breath and I will see what I can do for you.”

“Do for me?”

“You did promise I could make it up to you later. After you touched me this morning. It’s later and now you’ve brought me to pleasure twice. I pay my debts, sweetling.”

“I was just kidding with that phrasing. There’s no debt, Armitage. You don’t need to ‘pay me back’,” Rose shook her head, not wanting their relationship to be downplayed into some weird banking metaphor.

“I know,” he reassured her. “But I want to.”

“You want to?” Rose asked, a bit surprised.

“Yes, of course! I’ve been dying to touch you, to please you,” he mouthed gently against her neck, placing soft kisses along her pulse and down over her collarbone. If he mimicked what she’d done to him during the start, maybe he could figure out what she liked.

“By all means, then…” she smiled, lying back and letting him shift up onto his arms above her.

Hux’s eyes gleamed as he looked down at her, taking a deep breath.

“You’re so beautiful…” he whispered, leaning down to kiss her.

Now, he was the one taking his time, exploring her mouth with his tongue, not caring that she tasted of his own cum. Long fingers gently plucked at the cloth of her breast band, carefully pulling it off and tossing it to the side. The cool air made her nipples pucker, all but inviting him lower. He slid his mouth over her throat, kissing his way down to her breasts.

“Soft… sweetling, you’re so soft…” he moaned softly, nuzzling between her breasts. He let his lips glide over her skin, taking one hard nipple into his mouth, suckling gently and thoroughly enjoying the sounds she made in response.

Rose gasped, arching up against him, her hands combing through his hair to urge him on. He alternated between suckling with his lips and flicking with his tongue. She was shaking like a leaf as she grasped his wrist, leading his hand down along her body to the edge of her underwear.

Hux caught on quick, leaving her breasts reluctantly only to sit up and help Rose shimmy out of her last scrap of clothing. They were swiftly tossed aside and Hux had to take a deep breath as he looked at her laid out on the bed.

She was glorious; her skin golden and soft, her hair spread out behind her in waves of black silk, the curves of her body deliciously enticing. Full breasts, a trim waist, wide hips, thick thighs, an enticing triangle of silky black hair at their apex… she was no skinny little waif of a thing. She was utterly gorgeous and he, for once, allowed his frank admiration show in his eyes.

“You are… perfect,” he breathed, resuming his previous position. He sucked one nipple back into his mouth, moaning softly. His hands slid along the sides of her body, tracing over her lush curves, enjoying how sweetly she responded to him. She shifted and writhed under him, her breath coming faster as his hands slid between her thighs.

“Open for me, sweetling…” he breathed. “Let me feel you.”

She slowly parted her legs for him, watching him with a heated expression. He smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring manner, caressing her inner thigh with one hand, delicately feeling through the soft hair that guarded her most tender parts. Cautious, he ran his fingertips over her folds, surprised to find them already hot and wet. He groaned softly, exploring her with gentle care, learning how to touch her.

The tiny bundle of nerves at her apex made her cry out as he touched it. The welcoming heat below provided more and more slick. He’d never felt anything so erotic in his life. He let his fingers play around her entrance, watching how she moaned and canted her hips up, desperately seeking more of him. Certainly, he was teasing her a bit, but he couldn’t help but marvel over this provocative display that he was causing.

“Armitage… please!” Rose hissed in a high-pitched plea.

His name. Stars above, hearing his name on her lips was always a revelation. To hear it keened in pleasure, however, was deeply moving.

“Say it again, sweetling. Call my name,” he urged her softly.

“Armitage!” she ground out his name, possibly not even hearing his command, but obeying it nonetheless.

He groaned and re-angled his wrist, sliding two long fingers past the aching entrance of her core. She was even hotter here, so slick there was no resistance at all. She really did want him, not that he had doubted it, but having tangible, viable proof was still a welcome thing to his scientific mind. Rose gave a long, low cry, one hand clinging to her pillow, the other clutching at his pale shoulder. He leaned in to kiss her. He wanted to hear every sigh and moan and noise she made, but he was also aware that anyone outside in the hangar could likely hear them if they got too loud. Stifling her with his kiss seemed like the best option.

Reflexively, his fingers curled slightly inside of her and he felt a small patch of differently-textured flesh against his fingertips. Experimentally, he stroked it, earning a strangled cry from his lover’s lips. “Too much?” he asked breathlessly, fearing he had hurt her somehow.

Rose shook her head quickly. “No, not at all! Do that again!”

He repeated the movement, watching her intently. She shuddered, crying out in a shaky voice, eyes clenched shut as she gasped desperately for air. Whatever this small spot was, it seemed to be wonderfully arousing for her. He ducked his head, paying sweet attention to the nipple he’d neglected before. With a bit of effort, he was able to synchronize his sucking and the thrust of his fingers. Her body trembled under him, both of her hands clung to his shoulders, blunt nails biting into his skin.

“Armitage…” she pleaded his name, the tension gathering low in her belly, coiling tight. “Close… so close!”

A few more swipes of his fingers and she came; sharp, aching cries tearing themselves from her throat. She arched her back, hips rocking up to him in erratic thrusts, seeking more and more friction until she finally began to spiral down from the heights.

She was still holding on to Hux’s shoulders, her fingernails having broken skin, leaving little half-moon-shaped marks on him.

“Oh fuck, I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to hurt you…” she apologized while still gasping for breath.

“It’s nothing. A tiny bit of pain in the pursuit of your pleasure is well worth it. It’s not even that bad, I just have very reactive skin,” he reassured her, slowly removing his fingers from her.

His entire hand was soaked with her juices and he only just resisted the urge to lick his fingers in order to see what she tasted like. Instead, he rose from the bed, pulling his underwear and pants back on, and went to fetch a cloth from the fresher. Washing his hands while he was in there, he returned with a damp cloth. Rather than simply handing it to her to clean herself with, he gently parted her legs and wiped the residual slick from her folds and inner thighs.

Rose blushed, not having expected such an intimate gesture from him now that the heat of the moment had passed. When she was all tidied up, she opened her arms up to him, beckoning him back to bed. He tossed the cloth aside and eagerly joined her. Once he was lying on his back, one arm behind her, she curled against him, one leg resting over his, one hand on his chest, her other arm tucked up between them. She pillowed her head on his shoulder, forehead against his jawline.

“That was… wow…” she finally sighed softly. “You are… a fantastic lover. You sure you’ve never done this before?” It was a teasing question.

He chuckled softly, “Quite sure. I never actually even wanted to before you.”

She smiled and cuddled closer, pressing a kiss to the underside of his jaw. “I’m surprised, really; a bit flattered too, but mostly surprised.”

“Why surprised?” he asked, hand drifting lazily up and down the length of her spine. With a little shifting, he was able to reach down and pull the rumpled blankets over them.

“You’re a handsome man. You were second only to the Supreme Leader in power. You had the wealth of the entire First Order at your control and disposal. How did no one snap you up?” she wondered, fingers caressing gently along his sternum.

“I don’t know. If anyone was interested in me, then they kept it well to themselves. No one ever made any untoward advances, although I suppose that might have been because if I was not amenable to such behavior, it would have meant a demerit or even a demotion,” he suggested. “Certainly none of the Stormtroopers ever thought to voice such a thing. My junior officers were always polite and loyal to me, but never flirtatious. My fellow senior officers were… indifferent to me in that respect.”

“You sort of created a bubble around yourself. Professionalism and propriety. To say nothing of the walls you built yourself around your heart. I assume no one had any idea about your… past?”

He sighed softly, thinking. “Some of the older officers did. They were contemporaries of my father. Some had been present when he tormented me. Some… participated.”

“Participated?” Rose echoed in horror. “He let other people hurt you too?”

“Not physically,” he shook his head. “But he wouldn’t stop them from calling me names or otherwise belittling me. In fact, I suspect he encouraged it. I was small and weak. Easy prey.”

“The more I hear about this man, the more I want to string him from a walker with his own entrails,” Rose grumbled.

Hux laughed at that rather pleasing image. “I wouldn’t hear of it. It would be terrible if he bled on you, my ferocious sweetling.”

Rose laughed, then growled playfully, nipping at his neck. “I’m ferocious now, hmm?”

“With those sharp little teeth? Absolutely.”


	11. Chapter 11

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

_Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table.  
You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss.  
_-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

Life around the base settled into something resembling a pattern.

There were smaller variations from day to day, but it mostly consisted of spending mornings with Rose, knocking their heads together to fix or modify equipment. Then they would have lunch together, occasionally Finn or Poe or both would join them. Afterwards, Rose would meet with her engineering team and go over their projects and assign new ones; Hux would meet with General Organa and the other senior officers for planning and intel compilation. They were slowly but surely concocting a plan for how to take on the Sith Fleet on Exegol.

More and more personnel were abandoning the First Order. Between the revelation that they were actually pawns of the Sith Eternal and the word that General Hux, considered a much respected figure by many, had been executed without due course; many had found themselves at a crossroads.

Some sought refuge within the shambles of the Republic, some simply disappeared into the void by hiding, but some found themselves aligning with the Resistance. Troopers, junior officers, techs, communications specialists, researchers… members from nearly every department had been wronged enough by the First Order to make them switch sides entirely.

With this bolster to their numbers and the incoming populations from several downtrodden planets, the Resistance was swelling well beyond their former numbers. This meant that everyone had new orders for organizing and assigning people where they were most needed. Some had brought gear with them, others needed someone to walk them past the “romantic” idea of rebellion and give them a dose of reality along with needed equipment.

Hux was actually surprised by how many non-First Order shinies[10] had previous military experience, either from the old Rebellion, internal planetary conflicts, or even from the Clone Wars.

Come evening, he would meet Rose for supper and then they would retire to their quarters to tinker on things, watch her holo-drama, or even just talk. Then, they would turn off the lights and go to bed.

Granted, going to bed rarely meant going to sleep. They had been slowly learning each other, learning how to touch each other, how to please one another, how to simply be with each other. More so than over the past year, they got to know each other.

Rose told him about her family, about their life as indentured workers on Hays Minor; how she and Paige would play in her grandmother’s old flight simulator, how she’d always been able to rattle off spec details for any machine she encountered, how her parents had paid for her and Paige to get out.

Hux told her more of his life, though it was far less pleasant; what little he remembered of his mother and of Arkanis, his experiences as a cadet and a junior officer, his first command, his mutual respect with Phasma, the many triumphs and pitfalls on his way to becoming the youngest general in history.

Still, they had tried to take it slow with their sexual explorations. Hux’s history with abuse made Rose determined to take things carefully so he wouldn’t feel overwhelmed or rushed. As such, they had yet to take the plunge and fully make love. But Hux could tell that Rose was getting impatient.

Hux, for his part, was practically clawing out of his own skin for the go ahead. He wasn’t confident in his abilities as a lover, but he was never going to be more ready than he currently was. He was merely trying to pluck up his courage to ask Rose if they could progress.

It was this task that required the most attention. Courage had never been a strong trait of his. He considered this as they finished up their evening meal and headed to their quarters. The sun had already set on Ajan Kloss, leaving various torches and lanterns to light the camp. Still, he held Rose’s hand and led the way, making sure neither of them would trip. All around them, insects were buzzing and chirping in the surrounding forest, creating a cacophony of mating and territory calls.

Once they were inside, the outside noise was muffled to a dull roar and they could be sure no one heard anything of what they did either. Hux took off his jacket and hung it up, pausing to smile at the general’s stripes that Rose had sewn on the left-hand sleeve. To anyone else, it would have been mere decoration, but to him it was a testament to his abilities. Rose understood this and had added the ornamentation simply to please him.

“It’s not all that late. Anything you want to do tonight?” Rose asked, undressing next to their bed to get into the overly-large tunic that she routinely used for off-duty comfort.

Hux sat on the desk chair to bend and remove his boots. “I was thinking we could go to bed a little early?”

That made Rose look up with raised eyebrows. “Really now? And just what sort of bed-based activities are you hoping for?”

The now familiar feeling of heated cheeks made him glance down briefly before meeting her gaze again. “I want to be inside of you,” he said in a voice so soft that he was a little afraid that she wouldn’t hear him and he might have to repeat it.

Rose’s expression told him that she had indeed heard him. She blinked and apparently had to remind herself to breathe. “Are you sure you’re ready?”

“Yes. I mean, no… I mean-,“ he broke off with a sigh. “I’m as ready as I’m ever going to be. The only thing stopping me is… my own inexperience. That’s not going to improve unless I… unless we… venture into unknown territory. Unknown for me, at least.”

“Unknown for me, too,” she said, a soft smile tugging at her lips. “I may have had sex a few times before with others, but it wasn’t like this. I didn’t feel like this until you. So, it’s a bit new to me, too.”

“Are you ready for this?” he asked, removing his belt and starting to unbutton his shirt.

“Am I ready? Armitage, I’ve been aching for you since we had comm-sex or whatever that was. Before I even knew you were Armitage Hux,” she admitted, finishing her own disrobing, although instead of reaching for her nightshirt, she turned and peeled back the bedcovers, climbing in and laying down, simply waiting for him to join her.

“I barely dared to hope you would still want me after you found out who I was. Thankfully, I know better now,” he smiled, letting his shirt hang on the back of the chair. His trousers and underclothes soon followed and he knelt down on the bed, his knees straddling one of her thighs and his hands supporting him on either side of her arms.

“You know the deal; if anything feels off or makes you uncomfortable, you say something, right?” Rose affirmed, looking up at him with a tender expression.

“I will. The same goes for you, Rose… I do not want to hurt you or do anything unwanted by accident,” he nodded before lowering himself on his arms and nuzzling against her neck gently. “Just say the word and I will stop in an instant.”

“Deal,” she said softly, sliding her hands along his arms, up to his shoulders and around the back of his head to comb through his hair. With a gentle grip, she maneuvered his face towards hers, kissing him hungrily.

He groaned low in his chest, quickly deepening the kiss. She tasted of the tea and red berries they’d shared before retiring, the slight residual sweetness making the already-pleasurable act even more so.

Breaking the kiss off, he quickly busied his mouth with kissing along her soft jawline and down the length of her throat. She gave a low cry when he briefly used his teeth against the tender junction between her neck and her shoulder.

“Armitage,” she moaned his name, her blunt nails trailing along the back of his neck.

He loved hearing his name on her lips, something that he had quickly acclimated to despite barely ever hearing his first name from anyone for a long time. He slid lower, kissing between her breasts. Now that he could lean on his elbows rather than his hands, he could touch her more freely. He cupped her breasts, massaging them gently, thumbs flicking over her nipples. They hardened quickly in response to his ministrations, prompting him to take one into his mouth to suckle. Stars, he loved hearing her moan and cry out for him.

“Rose… my sweet Rose…” he whispered against her skin as he slid from one nipple to the other. Her small hands moved from his hair down the back of his neck and over his shoulder blades, a sensitive spot on him that they had both only just discovered. The sensation made him shiver and roll his shoulders reflexively.

His cock had begun hardening the moment they’d started kissing; this tender caress easily pushed him into full hardness. He pulled his mouth away, moaning against her heated skin.

“I’ve dreamt of this since that first night we talked of such things…” he whispered, lips moving over her kiss as he spoke. “Dreamt of you soft and willing and aching underneath me. You’ve dreamt of it too, haven’t you?”

“Yes,” she gasped, his gentle, Arkanisian-accented voice sending thrills of need through her. “I’ve fantasized about you being hard and swollen and hungry above me.”

“And that is exactly how you have me right now,” he confirmed before sliding his tongue along the lower curve of one breast, the tang of sweat and heat filling his senses. “Very… very… hungry,” he growled softly, nipping at the soft flesh just hard enough to leave a small mark.

Rose jumped slightly, giving a small yelp. “Armitage!”

He soothed the bite gently with his tongue, distracting her as he slid one hand further down. He gently parted her legs, caressing her inner thighs, relishing the softness he encountered there. With heated lips, he drew her nipple back into his mouth. Oh, sweet stars, she was so perfect against him; soft where he was hard, curved where he was angular, so delightfully responsive to his touch.

His fingertips drifted along the tender cleft between her legs and he gasped how hot and slick she was already. Gently, he delved his fingers between those supple folds, slowly circling around the tight bud of nerves. Rose rewarded him with another keening cry of his name.

“Sweet stars, you’re so… wet…” he breathed.

“For you,” Rose panted. “All for you. Stars, you make my blood sing.”

Rose writhed under his touch, her hands still clinging to his shoulders. Her entire body was alight with sensation, her hips canting up to him eagerly. Every swipe of his fingers made her cunt clench around the emptiness inside of her, making her whine in frustration. “Please, love… I need you.”

A low snarl tore itself from his throat as he fought to control himself. His need for her was near overwhelming, but he would not risk ruining this first time for either of them. “Open for me, sweetling,” he breathed, voice low as he re-positioned himself atop her.

She spread her legs wide for him as he shifted between them, hoisting her hips up and sliding one of their pillows underneath so that they would have an easy angle. Both of them panting heavily, Hux gripped himself carefully, very gently rubbing the swollen head of his cock along her folds, coating himself in her slick. Their eyes met, an unspoken reminder to go slowly passing between them. Hux swallowed hard and pressed his hips forward, easing himself inside of her, inch by excruciating inch.

Twice, he had to stop and catch his breath, unprepared for the tightness that squeezed around him, snapping more and more of the threads of his control. Once he was buried to the hilt, he let out the breath that he wasn’t even aware he’d been holding. His shoulders shaking, he fought to remain still, allowing Rose a chance to adjust. If ever there was a challenge to his iron-clad resolve, this was it.

Rose drew her legs up along his sides, tilting her hips more firmly against him, giving a soft cry as the motion pulled him in even deeper. He was long and thick and felt utterly perfect inside of her, she’d never felt such a delicious stretch before. She could feel his pulse throbbing against her core… or was it her own? She couldn’t even tell.

“Oh, fuck…” she squeaked. “Armitage… fuck, you feel so good.”

He made a rough sound in the back of his throat, his spine fighting to thrust his hips forward, though he successfully remained still. Mostly. “Fuck, Rose… if I start moving, I’m not going to last long,” he ground out through clenched teeth.

“Me neither,” she shakily assured him. “Please… “

Another grinding cry tore itself from his mouth, the remainder of those threads snapping. He pulled back, almost fully out of her, and slid back in deeply; although the movement was slow and measured, he knew he wouldn’t be able to maintain it. The pressure gathering low in his body was quickly reaching critical mass. He managed one more desperate cry of her name before he let instinct take over. He drove himself into her over and over again, hips pumping hard.

Rose shrieked, clinging to him and rocking her hips up to meet his thrusts. Each time he slid balls deep, her entire body engulfed him, drawing him in. He was so thick that his cock pressed constantly against her most sensitive parts, the rim of him providing an additional punch of pleasure with each pass. Each of her moans melted into a whispered cry of his name.

Almost without warning, everything tightened, rendering her nearly incoherent. Her inner walls clamped around him, milking him hard. She toppled over the edge in complete abandon, pleasure overtaking all other sensations and thoughts. All she knew was herself and the man in her arms.. Everything else in the entire galaxy fell away into nothing.

Hux gave a short, sharp cry, the sudden grip pushing him past pleasure into ecstasy, a punch in his spine that spread forward as he came. Hot, quick pulses rushed through him as the world contracted around them, stealing his breath and his heart and his mind. The only word left in his mind was her name, which he chanted over and over. Her short nails dug into the skin of his back, leaving pink welts on the pale flesh; the slight pain only added to his passion, prolonging his orgasm well past spilling his seed inside of her.

They held onto each other tightly, faces tucked into the other’s neck. Rose was the first to recover enough to move or speak, stroking the back of his head down over his neck and down his back.

“Are you all right?” she asked, feeling him continue to shake.

Unable to speak, he simply nodded; face still firmly hidden in the crook of her neck. Hot tears drenched his face. Were they his tears or hers? He pulled back slightly and saw sweat on her brow and cheeks, but her eyes were clear of the indicative redness of crying. Oh stars, _he_ had been crying. He hid his face back into the crook of her neck, embarrassed at how he had lost control of himself. She pressed a kiss to his temple, gentling her grip on him, though she kept her legs curled along his sides, cradling him between them. “It’s all right, love. I’ve got you. I won’t let you go,” she whispered to him.

A few more trembling moments and he was able to turn his head slightly, enough that he could see her again.

“I’m alright… I think. I’ve never… that was…” he sighed, almost laughing at himself. “I don’t even have words…”

“Me either,” she smiled, kissing him gently. “That was… amazing. Even that feels like a totally inadequate word.”

“Life-changing,” he whispered in-between kisses, his voice tinged with tears. “I love you, Rose. More than anything.”

If possible, she held him closer. “I love you, too, Armitage. With all of my heart.”

Slowly, his body relaxed and melted against her, his cock softening, though he did not yet pull out from her, content to bask in their shared afterglow. He peppered her neck and cheek with soft, small kisses.

Rose winced slightly as she lowered her legs to the bed.

Ever observant, Hux reached down to rub her hips gently. “Oh, sweetling… did I hurt you?” he asked, concerned .

“No, no… you didn’t hurt me. I’m just a little sore from the exercise,” she smiled, leaning up to kiss his jawline. “You’ll probably be a little sore too.”

“The most welcome pain,” he said chuckled softly. “Here, I should let you breathe. I might not weigh much, but it’s enough to hamper your lungs.”

Carefully, he slid from her with a soft whimper, his softened cock almost painfully sensitive now. He rolled to the side, laying on his back and gathering her close. Rose pulled the covers back over them and curled blissfully in his arms, her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

For his part, he closed his eyes, enjoying the soft weight of her on him. He let his one hand pet through her hair, the soft strands flowing through his fingers like water. “You are so utterly perfect,” he whispered against the top of her head.

“Not perfect, but I’m flattered you think so,” she said, pressing a soft kiss over his heart.

“Perfect for me. Better?” he countered with a soft laugh.

“Yes. And you are perfect for me,” she nodded.

“Mmm, I do not deserve you, sweetling. But I will spend the rest of my life trying to.”

“Fair enough,” she allowed, “You should rest. It’s been a long day and we’ve both had a lot of activity.”

“Mmm… I do actually feel tired now. That’s new,” he murmured drowsily.

Rose smiled, lifting her head to look at him, his sleepy expression making her heart squeeze at how open and soft it was. “Go to sleep, beloved. I’ll watch over your dreams,” she gave him one more kiss to his chest.

He was asleep almost before she’d finished speaking, dropping off gently into a deep slumber.


	12. Chapter 12

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

 _Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table._  
 _You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss._  
-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

Several days later, in the midst of repairing the motivator on one of the astromechs, the entire atmosphere of the Resistance base changed in a split second. A call went out, compelling everyone to run for the communications bay. Hux and Rose both ran there, hands clasped together tightly.

Kaydel was at her station, trying to hone in on a frequency. “It’s weird. It’s one of ours, but I don’t recognize the call sign?” she shook her head.

Artoo piped up, beeping excitedly. Threepio provided translation. “Artoo says that it is the call sign of Red Five, Master Luke’s X-Wing class fighter.”

“Luke’s? How is that possible?” Kaydel frowned.

“It’s Rey! It has to be!” Finn insisted. “What’s the message say?”

“Coordinates… and jump points,” Kaydel said, recording them clearly.

“Exegol,” Hux said, recognizing the sets. “She’s leading us to Exegol. The Sith Fleet must be getting ready to launch. If they get into orbit, there’s no stopping them.”

“Then there’s no time to lose. Chewie. Lando. Take the Falcon. You know what to do,” Leia said nodding at each of them in turn. “Poe, you and your fighters will go in and keep them busy. Take turns firing on their signal tower. Assuming they will transfer the signal to the _Steadfast_ , we’ll send in our ground forces.”

“Ground forces being a bit of a misnomer in this case,” Rose nodded.

“Finn, you and your team need to find the signal towers on the _Steadfast_. Rose, you need to work your magic and disable it,” Leia said.

Hux stiffened, looking at Rose in slight horror. He had not known she would be actually going to Exegol. Developing the tech to take out the signal, providing support over comms; yes. But actually going to that accursed planet and physically having to go up against the Sith Fleet?

The rest of the meeting was a muted blur to him. The moment Leia dismissed them to make preparations, he took Rose’s hand and pulled her over to their shared workstation.

“Why didn’t you tell me that you planned on going to Exegol?” he demanded, though a note in his voice showed he was anxious rather than demanding.

“I thought you knew,” she explained, pulling her hand from his only to cup his face. “Armitage, this is a really delicate process. We need someone who can think on the fly and adjust the tech as needed. I’m the best equipped to do that.”

“It’s dangerous!” he exclaimed. “You don’t know what you’re up against! The Sith Fleet is vast! The sheer amount of TIE fighters they will send out to kill all of you is more than you have a hundred times over! And I’m not confident in Calrissian’s abilities to ferry any reasonable number of ships to our cause. People will not want to risk their lives in a suicide mission.”

Rose blinked, hands sliding to his shoulders. “People will help us! No one in the whole galaxy wants the Emperor to come back in any form. They will come. You helped come up with this plan. Don’t you have any faith in it? In us? In me?”

“I do… but… I’m a realist. Our chances are low. Not zero, but low,” he sighed. He pulled over a crate and had her sit on it, kneeling down himself so they were slightly more eye to eye. “Rose, my love… I would be destroyed if anything were to happen to you. I have never been more afraid than I am right now at the very idea of you going anywhere near Exegol.”

She frowned, knowing he meant every word. It tugged at her heart and the idea of leaving him alone in the universe did not sit well with her either. “I’m afraid too, but I have to do this. The only way to save the galaxy, my friends, and you… is to defeat the Sith. I have to protect what I love, even though I may die in the process.”

His heart gave a sharp pain at that single, terrible word. “Then I’m going with you,” he blurted out before he’d even given it any consideration. “We work best together. It can only give us better odds if we’re both there. I know the ship better than Finn and where everything we need is.”

Rose raised her eyebrows in surprise. “You’re serious? Armitage… if they see you, they’ll know you’re alive. They may even single you out! If any of them survive, they’ll send people after you!”

“I don’t care. I will not let you do this alone,” he declared. “I love you, Rose. I will not be parted from you.”

The icy fear that crossed her face indicated to him that she now understood his fear all the better. Swallowing tightly, she nodded. “All right. Together.”

“We live or die together,” he said softly, drawing her down so their foreheads touched.

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, shifting to kiss him. He groaned in response, pulling her closer, his body between her legs. With a low growl, he pulled back. “Oh, Rose… I would make love to you right here and now if I could.”

“I know. Believe me, I would let you; but we don’t have time. We have to go prep for the mission,” she said reluctantly. “Come on. We need to suit up and get on the transports. Bring your kit.”

He nodded, rising from his knees. With her hands in his, he pulled her to stand, wrapping his arms around her tightly. A brief moment of affection that made his throat constrict, hoping it would not be the last time. 

“I love you,” he whispered against the top of her head.

Her arms slid around him, holding him just as tightly. “I love you, too,” she assured him, standing on her toes to kiss the underside of his jaw.

It took very little prep time for the two of them; just getting dressed and grabbing their supplies.

Hux had fashioned himself a uniform of sorts, his boots, gloves, and jodhpurs from the First Order were still in place. He had added a dark green shirt with a v-neck and long sleeves; and the charcoal grey coat with his rank insignia. He lamented the loss of the clean lines and larger presence of his First Order uniform, but Rose insisted that she much preferred this rougher, less fussy look.

For her part, Rose had traded in her mechanic jumpsuit for form-fitting brown trousers and a tan button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. She’d stolen an older pair of Hux’s gloves that were already well-worn. He’d tried to insist that they were well past their usefulness, but she liked how soft they were and that the wear on them gave her a better grip on things.

Their kits were composed of various tools and bits and bobs that they could use for any engineering task; everything from carefully calibrated drivers to scraps of aluminum foil to use as a conductor in a pinch. Between the two of them, they had everything they could possibly need. Weapons-wise, they both had charged blasters and he still had a monomolecular blade up his sleeve.

As they ran for their transport, Finn gave them a look, but said nothing. If Hux was coming too, that could only mean they had two more boots on the ground, and he knew full well how smart he was.

Hands still clasped together, Rose and Hux sat next to each other, the former unable to keep her leg still, bouncing it anxiously. Although aware of the presence of others on the transport, including Kaydel, Finn, and Mitaka, Hux brought Rose’s hand up to his lips, kissing the knuckles gently. The motion prompted her to look at him, surprised by this somewhat public display of affection. He said nothing, but his eyes said enough. _We’ll be alright. We’ll be alright. As long as we’re together, we’ll be alright._


	13. Chapter 13

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

 _Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table._  
 _You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss._  
-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

The journey to Exegol was harrowing, but nothing compared to what greeted them once they arrived. Thousands of star destroyers, each one dwarfing the _Steadfast_ , were waiting to be launched into orbit, jarringly highlighted by flashes of lighting and thunder that were curiously metallic-sounding. The fighters had gone ahead, already engaging the enemy as carefully as they could while also trying to blow up the relay tower on the surface. 

Rose swallowed hard; Hux had not been exaggerating about the numbers, there seemed to be at least ten TIEs for each x-wing. The saving grace for the Resistance forces was that x-wings were more agile than TIEs.

“OK, kids, let’s mount up. As soon as they bounce that signal over to the _Steadfast_ , we gotta book it across the surface,” Finn, his voice sounding sure and steady, although his eyes betrayed how scared he actually was.

This was only part of the mission that Rose might have called “fun” under different circumstances. The rather sweet-natured orbaks that Jannah and her company had brought with them would certainly throw their enemies for a loop. And they could travel at speed without the FO having the ability to jam them the way they could mechanical speeders. 

She pulled herself up onto one of them, petting its neck in what she hoped was a calming manner. Hux hauled himself up behind her; since he had joined at the last moment, they didn’t have a separate mount for him, but they’d been assured that a single orbak could easily carry them both. He held on to Rose’s waist, holding her in the cradle of his thighs while she clung to the reins. With any luck at all, neither of them would fall off.

The second the back hatch opened, they tore out of the transport. Rose could already see the tower ahead… and another beyond that. “Fuck!” she swore. “How do we know which tower they’ve transported the signal to?”

“We don’t! We’ll have to take them all out one by one!” Hux shook his head.

“It would be faster if we split up!” Rose yelled over the wind and thunder.

He wanted to protest, but this was no time for an argument and she was right. “You start on the first one! I’ll keep riding to the second! Catch up to me once you’re done and we’ll ride for the next set!”

Rose brought the orbak up to a stop, tumbling off of its back with little grace. “Keep going! I’ll be right there! Don’t get blown up!”

“Good advice!” he yelled, although his voice was mostly lost in another shriek of thunder. He urged the orbak into a gallop, skidding to a stop by the second tower. He was halfway done by the time Rose charged over to him.

“Use the foil! It’s quicker! It doesn’t need to last! Just needs to work long enough for us to blow this thing apart!” she reminded him, hoping his penchant for efficiency didn’t slow then down.

He followed her instructions without question, finishing up quickly. They both looked up just in time to see a group of three Stormtroopers racing towards them. No, not Stormtroopers… their armor was entirely red. These were Sith Troopers.

“Rose, down!” he shouted, un-holstering his blaster and aiming it quickly. He fired three shots in quick succession, each one hitting their target in the vulnerable spot between the bottom of their helmet and the top of the chest plate.

Rose wheeled around from where she had dropped the second he’d ordered her to. Fuck, she’d had no idea he was such a good shot! 

“That was very sexy, love. I’ll reward you for it later tonight!” she exclaimed, giving him a quick kiss on his cheek. “On to the next!”

There were four sets of towers on the _Steadfast_. Hux and Rose had managed to disable three of the sets when a massive explosion rocked the star destroyer, knocking both of them off their feet. Sheets and sheets of lightning were streaking through the ships. What was extra strange was that they were emanating from… the ground? And they seemed to be targeting Resistance ships!

Hux’s eyes went wide as he realized what it was. “Palpatine. He’s regained his power,” he shuddered, pulling Rose back when she tried to move on to the next tower.

“Armitage, let go!” she yelled. “We can still do this! Palpatine or not, these ships cannot get off the ground without the towers. He can sit his wrinkled ass here on Exegol and die mad about it!”

He swallowed hard and nodded, trying very hard to find his stumbled courage. “Head for the next! I’ll be right behind you!”

“No, I’m not leaving you here!” She pulled him to his feet and took off running, pulling him along by the hand. “Stay with me! We’re almost done!”

As they raced to the next tower, a thousand quick breaks to the sound barrier made them both look up. All over, ships were popping in from hyperspace, the Falcon at the head. Every make and model of ship she’d ever even heard of was represented, everything from ancient pieces of junk that looked like they might be held together with mesh tape and prayers to shiny, fresh-off-the-assembly-line ships.

“I don’t believe it,” Hux muttered, looking around them in awe at this massive, mismatched, but very dedicated new numbers to their ranks. “They came. I had no idea this many would support us!”

Rose was grinning ear to ear. “I told you! I told you people would come if we asked!”

In the midst of their joy, another explosion rocked the _Steadfast_. It wasn’t lightning this time, the ship they were standing on was suddenly listing to the right, slowly tipping them towards the ground far below.

“The bridge!” Hux yelled, pointing at the elevated bridge above them. He could just barely make out the familiar silhouette of Enric Pryde standing at the helm. Almost as soon as he recognized the allegiant general, the bridge exploded in a massive fireball, launching him into the open air to his death down below.

Hux had no time to rejoice in that particular death.

“Rose, we have to go!” he pulled at her arm. “With the bridge gone, they can’t bounce the signal anymore! Look!” He pointed at the Xystons closest to them, which were slowly tipping back down to the planet’s surface. “This whole ship is going to blow as soon as that fire reaches the reactors! We have to get off of it!”

Rose nodded, letting him pull her along this time. Together, they ran for the rendezvous point, only to find that the transport had been forced to take off to avoid being hit with debris. Swearing a blue streak, Rose yelled into her comm, broadcasting a distress call to anyone who could hear. “Mayday! We’re still on the outer deck of the _Steadfast_! Mayday!”

“Rose! Where are you two?” Finn’s voice crackled back.

“Uh… near what’s left of the command center?” Rose asked uncertainly, blanking for a moment in the panic.

“Starboard side, one section back from the aft-most hangar bays,” Hux quickly supplied. “The ship is going to blow, we need extraction NOW!”

“On my way in the Falcon! Lando can get close enough for you two to jump!” Finn replied. “Just hang on for a few minutes!”

“I don’t know if we HAVE a few minutes!” Rose yelped just before another explosion further back on the _Steadfast_ knocked her forward, sending her sprawling onto her hands and knees, a metallic clatter immediately sending her into a new panic. “My medallion!”

The pendant slid down towards the edge of the ship. If it tumbled off, there would be no retrieving it. Rose vainly tried to crawl over to the pendant, but even she knew she would not reach it in time. With no hesitation, Hux took off after it, sliding onto his hip with a bone-shaking thud. One well-placed grab and he seized the medallion before it could gain any more speed. He quickly slipped it into the breast pocket of his jacket and hauled himself to his feet. The angle of the ship was getting more and more extreme, making it a very difficult to climb back to Rose’s side. They braced themselves against two outcroppings of Astromech pods to keep from flat-out sliding off the side.

“Rose! Come down to me!” he called, reaching his arm up and indicating what he wanted her to do..

She looked down at him, the distance alarming even after seeing Hux cross it. Licking her lips, she tried to position herself so she would glide right down to him, feet first. One second to send a silent prayer to whomever and she let gravity take effect. The speed with which she slid scared her enough to make her want to clap her hands over her eyes. Instead, she kept them locked on Hux, reaching out for him. He grabbed her neatly and pulled her to balance on the outcropping too.

“I’ve got you. I’ve got you,” he said against her ear as she shivered, her arms wrapping tightly around his waist. “I won’t let you go, sweetling. We’re alright.”

The familiar whine of the Falcon’s notoriously unreliable engines roared over the wind and thunder, its back bay door open. Finn stood on the ramp, one hand gripped tight around a support rod, the other reaching out. “Rose! Come on!” he yelled.

“You have to jump, Rose! Quickly, before the ship goes up!” he urged her, disentangling her arms from around him. 

She was shaking like a leaf, terrified of heights. On the massive hull, with tech work to distract her, she’d been fine. But now that she had to physically throw herself over a chasm, her fear was paramount. 

Hux’s voice grounded her. “Rose, I can give you a boost, but you’ll still have to jump. Finn will catch you.”

She shuddered, but nodded. “Okay… okay. You’ll be right behind me, right?”

“I’ll be right behind you,” he confirmed.

With a coordinated effort, he ran her forward with his hands on her waist. Once she started to jump, he lifted her up to give her more height than she otherwise would have had. The added oomph sent her hurtling over to the Falcon, right into Finn’s arms.

Hux, however, had to turn and duck onto his hands and knees to try and stop his potential trajectory. The muscles in his arms and calves screamed as he barely managed not to fall over the edge. Teeth gritted, he started to make the slow, torturous climb back up so he could make his own leap for it.

“Hux!” Finn shouted. 

“ARMITAGE!” Rose shrieked. The high note of terror in her voice made him look up. Six Sith Troopers had apparently decided to take down their First Order traitor as the last thing they would do.

She saw Hux still as he tried to think of his next move; never in her life did she feel so powerless, that he was just several feet away from her but she could do nothing to help him. Nothing except to watch his impending doom. Rose’s hope was snuffed out as the Sith troopers raised their weapons. She screamed for him to run, but it seemed that even her words could not reach him as he stared down the barrels of blasters. 

She saw Hux flinch as they opened fire on him, though their aim was lacking in the wind and rumble of the ship. Finn acted first, pulling out blasters to shoot. Rose followed suit. Their shots landed far ahead of Hux, though they also didn’t hit their intended targets. Fear had taken control of her body and she couldn’t stop shooting. She knew she could hit one of them, any of them. Hux barely managed to raise his one hand up into a “cease fire” gesture.

Finn understood right away and lowered his blaster. He had to push down Rose’s to get her to stop shooting. “He’s telling us to stop! We’re too close to hitting him! Can’t aim for shit up here! “

Rose stopped shooting, watching Hux struggle. How was he going to get across to them now? If he actually managed to stand up, it would only give them a larger target. But if he stayed where he was, he would either fall or go down with the ship. That icy cold grip squeezed around her heart, suddenly sure she was about to lose him. She both couldn’t take her eyes off of him, but also desperately wanted to look away. She didn’t want to watch him die. Frozen to the spot, all she felt was crushing helplessness.

Hux got his legs under him, keeping his eyes on the Sith Troopers. The tread of his boots helped keep him from sliding any further down. All he had to do was straighten up, turn, and run for all he was worth; at least, that was what he told himself. They’d won. They could go home. All he had to do was not get killed in the next five minutes. Surely even he could manage that?

Shakily, he rose to his feet. The Sith Troopers sensed what he was going to try to do and began to close in on him, still firing, their shots getting nearer and nearer. Spreading his arms out as much as he dared, Hux tried to present a larger target than he was. If they hit him in the arm or shoulder, it would hurt, but he could still make it to the Falcon.

As soon as he had that thought, a split second of blazing light hit him directly over his heart. He tumbled backwards, head hitting the hull with a sickening crack. He could just hear Rose screaming on the edge of his consciousness. The last thought he had before blackness was a nagging sense of déjà vu.

Rose screamed as she saw him fall limply down, looking like a broken child’s toy. She wasn’t even sure if she was using actual words or just screaming in general. Tears blurred her vision as she clung to the support rod, her knees refusing to support her _. Not him. Not him. Not him. Please, please, please, don’t take him from me! Gods, goddesses, Force, anything, PLEASE._

A whoosh of forest-scented air rushed past her, evident even in the cold wind. Chewbacca leapt nimbly across the gap and just barely caught Hux before he could fall into the abyss below. Unnerved by the sight of an enraged Wookie, the Sith Troopers stopped firing just long enough for Chewbacca to leap back onto the Falcon. Rose quickly followed him, her heart a cold lump in her throat, every muscle in her body tight and painful at the idea of what she was likely to find.


	14. Chapter 14

Generously beta’d by Ngoc12TheFangirl and SincereJester

 _Thorns don't stop you from sniffing. Or putting them in a vase on the kitchen table._  
 _You work around them.... Cause the rose is worth it... Think what you'd miss._  
-Charles Martin, Chasing Fireflies: A Novel of Discovery

“Lando, punch it! We got ‘em!” Finn yelled up to the cockpit.

The Falcon lurched forward as Lando raced away from the _Steadfast_. Chewie knelt and laid Hux on one of the bunks before both he and Finn raced to the cockpit. It was the same one Rose had occupied after Crait, she realized distantly. She sat on the edge of the bunk next to him, tears running down her cheeks when she saw how pale he was, his lips gone nearly white. With all of the rocking of the Falcon, she couldn’t tell if he was breathing or not.

Swearing in a tear-stained voice, she pushed back his still-smoking coat, shoving it away from his chest. Underneath, his shirt was also still smoldering, embers burning along the edges of the hole the bolt had created. Through that resulting damage, she could see a twisted series of blisters, sloughing skin, and angry black char still forming on his chest. The smell of burnt flesh nearly made her gag; a disturbing reminder that a human being could easily be reduced to nothing more than meat.

She turned away, coughing when both that horrifying thought and the intensity of her tears threatened to overwhelm her. She grasped at one of his hands blindly, making a small noise of despair when she felt how cold it was. 

Forcing herself to return to him, her vision blurred again, seeing a thick, red stain seeping out across the cloth of the pillow under his head. The blow against the hull of the _Steadfast_ must have broken the skin of his scalp. Biting her lip, she carefully eased his head to one side; seeing his bright hair matted and dark with blood made her sob softly. The scalp was nothing, she reminded herself. Scalps always bled like crazy. The hit itself was more of a concern. And more worrying than that was the blaster bolt he'd taken to the chest. She almost didn't want to look. No, she _definitely_ didn't want to look. But she had to. If there was any chance of saving him, she had to see.

Using one of the knives from her kit, she carefully cut his shirt away. Unbidden, she remembered him commenting to her once that he preferred clothing from natural sources: wool, cotton, leather; all because he'd seen what heat could do to synthetic fabrics and armor, melting them to one's skin so that healing was nigh impossible. With trembling fingers, she pulled the fabric to the sides. His entire chest was blooming in blue and black bruises; right over his heart, the burns were deep and formed a bit of an odd, curving shape.

Curious. No blood. A bolt at high velocity and point-blank range should have torn his entire ribcage apart, pulverized his heart and lungs, and caused catastrophic amounts of bleeding. Hux was burned quite badly, but there was no blood. The burns had cauterized any vessels that had been damaged.

“What..?” she whispered to herself. It made no sense. He wasn’t wearing armor. His clothes had not been reinforced with durasteel or anything like that.

He groaned softly, head lolling to the other side from where Rose had shifted it, eyes fluttering as he slowly began to wake. 

“Rose,” he murmured her name before he was even properly conscious.

The mere sound of his voice made her sob in relief, leaning over him and not caring that her tears were falling unchecked onto his face. 

“Armitage!” she wept, stroking his hair back.

“You’re crying,” he said, his awareness of his surroundings slowly returning to him. “What did I do to make you cry now?”

She laughed, more tears escaping her. “You almost died, you big dummy! I don’t know how you aren’t dead!”

“Shhh…” he whispered, green eyes focusing on hers a bit hazily. “I’m hurting… but I don’t seem to be dead.”

“Right… right! I should treat those burns… get you some ice and bandages for your head,” she said, sitting up and wiping her eyes. Color was slowly coming back to his face, his lips turning pink once more. She quickly got some supplies and returned to his side. “Can you sit up, love? I need to get your coat and shirt the rest of the way off so I can see what I’m doing.”

He nodded and shakily sat up, though he had to brace himself on the side panel. Rose pushed his coat back off of his shoulders and tossed it to the floor. A heavy clank alerted her that there was something tucked in his pocket.

The left breast pocket. Over his heart.

Reaching down she extracted her pendant from his jacket. The curved teardrop shape of it was bent now, the center of it melted smooth and re-hardened, edges uneven. Sudden realization hit her; her medallion had saved his life! It had provided just enough of a barrier to keep that blast from searing right through him. She looked over at his chest, noting that the shape of the deepest burn on his skin was a clear outline of her medallion.

“Armitage,” she held the pendant up for him to see. “You had this in your pocket… from when you ran to grab it for me.”

Getting clearer by the moment, his green eyes focused on the shiny metal. “Yes. I didn’t want to risk losing it again,” he mused softly, then frowned as he saw what had happened to it. "Oh... sweetling... it's been ruined. I'm so sorry..."

"Armitage!" she exclaimed in disbelief. Did he really think she was admonishing him for damaging her medallion? "You dummy! It saved your life! You took a blaster bolt at point blank range! You should be dead!"

He blinked, clearly trying very hard to think linearly, his head injury making it all the more difficult. “It must have absorbed the heat and the impact…” He settled back down with a soft sigh, though he still stared at the pendant thoughtfully before looking down at his burned chest. “Funny… feels like you and Hays Minor saved me. Even though I was a part of the group that destroyed it and nearly destroyed you,” he murmured in a wondering voice.

This observation restarted the water works, Rose sobbing and laughing at the same time. “As soon as I get a new chain for it, you’re going to start wearing it all of the time.”

“Why would you want me to do that? It’s yours, Rose. Yours and Paige’s,” he shook his head, not wanting to commandeer the only piece of her history that she still possessed. “This is a… what do they call it? A family heirloom. You should pass it on to our child someday. Not give it to me.”

That gave her pause. “OUR child?” she asked, tilting her head at him.

Color crept into his cheeks, indicating that he had spoken without thinking. “Yes, well… I mean… assuming that you… would ever… you know… WANT a child with me.”

A smile spread across her face. “I would. I do want to have kids with you.”

He frowned, licking his lips. “This is not how I ever intended to ask you… but…” He looked up at her with pleading eyes. “Rose… would you do me the immense honor of… being my wife?”

She hadn’t known what to expect, but it was not that. “Seriously? You mean it? You want to marry me?” she asked softly, eyes wide and a small smile pulling at her lips.

“I have never been more serious in my life,” he assured her. “And I promise it’s not the concussion talking. I ordered one ages ago… I have a ring for you… back in our quarters.”

“So this isn’t a spur of the moment thing? Armitage!” she exclaimed, leaning down to kiss him happily.

He kissed her back, licking his lips when they parted. “Mmm, not that I don’t enjoy your kisses, sweetling; but, that’s not an answer.”

“Oh! Yes!” she laughed. “Yes, yes, a thousand times, yes!”

_Epilogue_

_Four years after the Battle of Crait…_

Rose woke up slowly, sunlight streaming from their bedroom window, a light breeze tossing the gauzy curtains about. She stretched, shifting in the bed to roll onto her other side. Hux’s spot was still warm, proving he had not been awake for long yet. She could hear him in the kitchen, probably making some of that truly awful tea he still liked for some unfathomable reason. For her part, she was content to stay in bed for now, listening to birds singing outside and enjoying the warmth of the sunlight.

Not long after, Hux returned to their bedroom, a steaming cup in each hand. “You’re awake, good. I made you some of that jogan fruit tea that Rey suggested.”

He sat on the edge of the bed closest to her, clad in sleeping pants and a loose shirt. Time had been kind to him; despite nearing forty he could easily be mistaken for a man at least a decade younger. His fair skin and ginger hair were much the same as they had been. His hair was longer now, just brushing his shoulders, and he now had a gingery, well-trimmed beard as well. 

Rose often teased him for having prettier hair than she did. He was still as tall and slender as he had been, still toned and graceful. He had a few more scars to his name after his injuries on Exegol, but neither of them minded it. In fact, Rose often made a point of kissing over the sensitive twist of scars on his chest that had retained the shape of her necklace.

She stretched and sat up with some effort, accepting the mug gratefully. “Mmm, good husband,” she praised him teasingly, as though praising a puppy.

“How’d you sleep, sweetling? Did Sloane keep you up all night?” he asked, lifting her thin sleeping shirt and laying his hand on Rose’s swollen belly. She was just over eight months along and they were both getting very eager to meet their daughter. The baby shifted and moved against her father’s touch, responding to his voice and the pressure of his hand.

Ever since Rose had told him she was pregnant, he’d been alternating between abject joy and debilitating fear. Rose insisted that, despite his terrible upbringing, he would be a wonderful father. He was patient, intuitive, eager to teach, and most importantly, he already loved Sloane Tico-Hux with all of his heart.

“No, she was good and let her momma sleep this time,” Rose assured him, enjoying the warmth of his hand on her stretched skin. She put her hand over his, rubbing the back gently. Pregnancy had been rough on her; she’d had awful morning sickness in the beginning and now, she felt like she could barely move. Still, she loved her husband’s very gentle attentions. One thing she had not minded during her pregnancy was the hormones making her crave his touch even more than usual. “Mmm, that feels nice,” she purred softly, setting her tea aside. “Do I get some kisses too?”

Hux grinned, leaning down to kiss her, a low, soft groan rising from his chest. “Hmm, do I have to stop at just kisses?” he asked playfully, putting his tea on the nightstand next to hers.

“Nope. Although you may have let me be on top,” Rose laughed, running her fingers through his thick hair.

“You say that like it’s something I would actually protest,” he chuckled, nuzzling against her neck. “I love seeing you above me, riding me.”

Rose moaned softly, tipping her head back for him. Although he’d been increasingly careful to be gentle with her, his passion had not abated at all since their early days together. And, for her part, she was still just as hungry for him. Hux carefully pulled her shirt off and tossed it to the floor, warm hands massaging her breasts gently, thumbs flicking over her nipples. She gasped softly, her skin all the more sensitive now.

“Sweet stars,” Hux groaned against her lips. “I thought you could never be more beautiful. But like this… tits swollen, belly filled with our child, glowing and radiant and heavy with life… you are… a fucking goddess.” He often reminded her that she grew more beautiful with every passing day together. Rose could not see it, but she trusted Hux’s words. Otherwise, she thought she still looked much the same as she had when they’d first met, except that her hair had grown longer and she had taken to plaiting it in one long braid.

She smiled, moaning softly at his words. He’d gotten more comfortable with swearing, although he still mainly used such language in the bedroom only. Still, every time he did swear, it only served to arouse her more. To know that she affected him so much that he felt the need to use such filthy language was always gratifying.

He re-positioned himself on the bed, gently moving her legs so he was between them, on his hands and knees over her, the upper curve of her belly almost touching his. Rose looked up at him questioningly, wondering what he was up to since they’d already said she would be on top. He grinned at her, understanding the look and leaning down just enough to catch her mouth in a deep, hungry kiss. 

“I have to make my lady wife nice and wet for this, don’t I?” he teased her gently before starting to kiss his way down her body.

“You’ve already got me nice and wet, Armitage… but I am not stopping you if you’re going to do what I think you are,” Rose gasped softly as he took one of her hard nipples in his mouth. 

They had only become more sensitive as her pregnancy had progressed, something Hux used to his utmost advantage. There was no milk yet, that wouldn’t start until she gave birth, but they were still heavier than before and far more tender. His mouth was gentle as silk as he kissed and suckled and licked his way between her breasts.

She was panting and squirming under him by the time he began to kiss over her belly, hands rubbing the sides soothingly. They slid down over her hips and along her inner thighs, gently easing her legs wider to accommodate his shoulders between them. He smiled when he felt her legs tense slightly, her hips trembling. Oh, she was ready for him, but he wanted to bring her to crashing completion more than once.

“You are so beautiful,” he whispered, his breath hot against her wet folds, his Arkanisian accent starting to creep into his words.

She gasped at that bare contact, one of her hands shooting down into his hair. The first touch of his tongue along her flesh made her cry out, her other hand fisting in the sheets. 

“Armitage…” she moaned his name breathlessly.

Using the flat of his tongue, he laved along her cleft, sucking on the swollen folds, swirling his tongue around the tight bud at the top. “Sweet stars, you are delicious…” he purred softly before returning to his task. Every swipe of his tongue made her hips jerk up, seeking more and more sensation. Even the rasp of his beard against her skin served to increase her pleasure. He leaned in further, closing his lips around that swollen nub and sucking with gently varying amounts of pressure. Two long fingers delved along her flesh, sliding between her hot folds and teasing at the entrance to her core.

She gave a keening cry, fingers pulling at his hair. “Tease,” she managed to grind out through her teeth.

He chuckled without removing his mouth from her. Then he thrust his fingers inside of her, pumping them back and forth, mimicking what he would soon be doing with his cock. Her heated walls clenched around him, as though trying to draw him deeper. Curling his fingers, he found that soft patch that made her voice rise in pitch and cadence.

He groaned against her, the vibration against her clit pushing her ever closer to the edge. She was getting close, she needed to cum soon. He slid his fingers in and out more quickly, timing the motion with that of his lips.

Rose gave a sharp cry, her hips canting against him hard as she came, everything tightening in pulses that squeezed right down to her core, all but trapping his fingers inside of her. She sobbed his name in a trembling, desperate voice. She could feel him tense and shake as he watched her completion. When she was finally able to look up at him, his eyes were gleaming with want, his face and beard soaked with her juices. The smile he gave her was positively feral; all dark eyes and white teeth.

He shifted and lay to her side, pulling her against him, pressing his mouth against her shoulders and neck. She pulled him up into a proper kiss, moaning softly when she tasted herself on him. There was always something so forbidden about that and it felt so exciting no matter how many times it happened.

“Your turn, sweetling,” Hux groaned softly.

“You are a bit overdressed, sir,” she pointed out, noting the rather tall tent at the front of his pants.

“Mmm, so I am,” he laughed, pretending to just notice he was still clothed. “I suppose I should do something about that.”

He stood, pulling his shirt off and stepping out of his pants. Freed from the confines of his pants, his swollen cock bobbed as he returned to bed. He laid back as Rose shakily sat up, shifting her weight slowly. He helped steady her as she straddled him, her hands braced on his pale chest. 

“Go slow, sweetling … take your time,” he assured her, even though his body was clearly screaming for release.

“I’m all right. My legs are just a little shaky after that,” she said, her round belly pressing heavily against him as she dipped down briefly to kiss him. Reaching down, she wrapped her fingers around his cock, giving it a few strokes. He was fully hard, but still somehow managed to jerk against her touch. The sound of his slightly strangled moan made her smile, pleased by how she could affect him. She positioned him at her entrance and slowly sank down on to him.

No matter how many times they made love, she always loved that first thrust of him inside of her; the delicious stretch and fullness of having his thick cock push into her. She gave a long sigh of pleasure as she settled her weight down on his hips, letting him support her. For a moment, she remained there, enjoying the feel of him pulsing hard against her core.

“Rose…” Hux moaned in a strained voice, his hips rocking under her in an attempt to get her to move. “Now who’s being a tease?”

She laughed at him, using her thighs to lift herself up and then sink down. “Oh, Fuck…” she groaned, arching her back at the feel of him sliding home.

“Sweet Stars… you’re so tight!” Armitage exclaimed, hands gripping her hips.

Together, they found a steady rhythm, one slow enough for her to maintain, but quick and deep enough for each of them to climb to their peaks. Hux panted, watching her above him, her round belly and breasts bouncing with each thrust. He took one hand from her hips, traveling up to one of her breasts, kneading it gently. The soft flesh fit perfectly in his hand, warm and heavy. 

“Rose…” he groaned.

She gave an answering cry, leaning back against the front of his thighs for balance. He pumped his hips up harder, breathing hard, teetering dangerously on the precipice. He left her breast, sliding down over and then under her heaving belly. Questing fingers quickly found her center, circling gently around the small bundle of nerves there.

“Cum for me, sweetlin’,” he growled, his accent more pronounced.

Rose’s cries reached a crescendo, her body going tight around him as orgasm washed over her in strong, crashing waves. She gripped his thighs hard enough that there would likely be bruises later. Her own thighs stuttered in their support of her weight, prompting him to hold her hips more securely. She could feel her insides quake and milk at him, pulsing with their heartbeats. 

“Armitage…” she quavered his name. “Please!”

He obeyed her without needing further explanation. With a snarling cry, he snapped his hips up hard, rutting into her like a wild creature. His entire body strained with effort, his climax gripping him hard, like a punch to the gut, knocking the air out of him. A harsh shout escaped him as he spilled inside of her, the heat spreading through both of them like wildfire.

With shaking arms, he held her up, not wanting to risk her falling to either side or forward on her stomach. “I’ve got you,” he assured her in a roughened voice. “I’ve got you, Rose.”

“I know,” she breathed, her head hanging down, hair flowing over her shoulders where it had escaped the braid. “Fuck… fuck, that felt good.” She leaned forward just enough to rest her hands flat on his chest.

“Lie back down, sweetling,” he said softly as he helped her dismount, carefully laying her on her side. Once she was settled, he rose from the bed to clean himself off in the fresher. When he returned, he brought a clean, damp cloth out to her. As had become his habit, he sat next to her and gently cleaned her off, wiping the seed and sweat and everything from between her legs.

Once they were both cleaned, he returned to the bed, lying behind her and pulling the blankets up over them both. They would have to take advantage of these quiet, peaceful moments while they could. In a month or so, they would be new parents and would have to devote most of their energy to their daughter.

He kissed Rose’s shoulder, one of his arms under her head and the other resting protectively on her belly. “I love you, Rose,” he murmured against her ear.

“I love you too, Armitage,” she smiled in response, resting her own hand over his. “We both do.”

Five years ago, if someone had told Armitage Hux he would come to betray the First Order of his own free will and end up falling hopelessly in love with a girl from Hays Minor, he would have court martialed or possibly even killed them.

Five years ago, if someone had told Rose Tico that she would become a liaison to a First Order-based spy; that she would fall in love with him even after he was revealed to be General Armitage Hux, she would have laughed hysterically and told them to stop drinking paint thinner.

Life and, as it turned out, love was what had happened while they had been busy making other plans.

**Author's Note:**

> [1] Hamilton reference FTW! Marshal Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Reauchambeau was a French nobleman and general who played a major role in helping the Thirteen Colonies win independence during the American Revolution. During this time, he served as commander-in-chief of the French Expeditionary Force that embarked from France in order to help the American Continental Army fight against British forces  
> [2] I couldn’t find any evidence of a suitable planet near Crait in either Canon or Legends and, thus, created one of my own, Karlinus.  
> [3] [Fulcrum](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Fulcrum) is the codename used by Saw Gerrara, Ahsoka Tano, Alexsandr Kallus, and other Rebel intelligence operatives, as portrayed in Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels. I figure those stories would have been passed down through the ranks.  
> [4] Another Hamilton reference FTW! Hamilton yells this quite emphatically at Thomas Jefferson during one of the Cabinet Battles.  
> [5] Reeks were large, muscular quadrupeds native to the planet Ylesia and the Codian Moon. One such creature was used to attack Anakin Skywalker in Attack of the Clones. [This motherfucker, right here.](https://lumiere-a.akamaihd.net/v1/images/databank_reek_01_169_4cd1b702.jpg)  
> [6] Yes, I gave Hays Minor their own version of the King Arthur myths. Hush.  
> [7] Irish. It’s supposed to be Irish. May my Celtic ancestors forgive me.  
> [8] Reference to a similar line in About Time where Domhnall’s Gleeson’s character, Tim, is describing himself.  
> [9] Paraphrase of a line from Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  
> [10] In The Clone Wars, older clones would refer to a fully-trained but not yet battle-tested clone as a [“shinie”](https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Shinie). I figure this could be a little piece of slang that had trickled down through the Old Republic clones to the Imperial Empire and then to the First Order; and now just means anyone new, like saying “newbie”.


End file.
